Mikel Arteta issues new challenge to Arsenal stars - and it starts against Chelsea

Mikel Arteta has urged his Arsenal to win the battle to finish runners-up this season as he insisted: “If you cannot be the best, be the second best at least.”

The Gunners have fallen 15 points behind leaders Liverpool in the Premier League title race after failing to win their last three games. Chelsea can close the gap on Arsenal to only three points with a victory at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday.

And Arteta, whose side have finished runners-up in the last two seasons, warned: “They are contenders to finish second. I think from the moment I was playing pre-season and understanding how Enzo works and the talent that they have in the squad, in my opinion, they were contenders to even win it from the beginning because they have so much there.

"I think they can compete with any team. How many teams are now competing for second? A lot. There are still games to go. There's still a lot of variation, a lot of games between us, a lot of difficult games. There's a lot of teams still involved.”

Asked why finishing second matters as long as Champions League football is secured, the Spaniard added: “It does. “I prefer to finish first than second, second than third, third than fourth. And if you cannot be the best, be the second best at least. That's for sure.”

Arteta said the remaining games would also be important to assess what is required for another title challenge next season. “We're going to really have to think hard to understand ‘okay what is missing, what is really working and how we're going to now make the next step’,” he said.

Arsenal thrashed Chelsea 5-0 in this fixture last season.

“I think it's going to be a very different game and I think the way they develop as a team as well is very impressive,” the Arsenal boss added.

“What Enzo has done and the coaching staff, the amount of talent that they have in the squad. So yeah, a really tough match but we are our best as well, a big chance for us to win the game.”