Arsenal face a season-defining week with a crucial game in the Premier League title race against Fulham preceding the second leg of their Champions League semi-final with Atletico Madrid
Mikel Arteta insists Arsenal are “hungry” to end their trophy drought after learning from painful lessons of the past.
The Gunners are still in the mix for two pieces of silverware but they are faced with two defining games in four days against Fulham and then Atletico Madrid. Arteta admitted at the moment it is all about getting his team over the finish line rather than producing the glorious football from the nine-goal thriller between Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich in the other semi-final.
The Arsenal boss says that was one of the best games he has ever seen - but that the key difference between those clubs and his team is the injury list and fatigue from a gruelling Premier League season.
Arsenal will take a huge step towards the title and Champions League glory if they win both their games but the warning signs are there for all to see.
Back in 2023/24, they lost to Aston Villa - a defeat which cost them the title - in between their two ties with Bayern Munich. Last season, they lost to Bournemouth in between the two legs of their semi-final with Paris Saint-Germain. The same thing happened last month when they lost to Bournemouth in the middle of their quarter-final against Sporting Lisbon. They cannot afford yet another slip against Fulham.
Arteta said: “Hunger. Hunger to win. That's it. To compete, to prepare and to achieve the goal that we set at the start of the season. Focus on Fulham and hunger. Hunger to play, hunger to compete, hunger to win, hunger to be closer to achieving our dream.
“I think it all comes down to preparation. We have done it for nine and a half months now so we are used to that and we know that we can only focus on one game.
“That game has enough difficulties and challenges so thinking in a different way is not going to be helpful at all so the players’ reaction immediately after was: ‘Now it’s Fulham, now it’s Fulham.’ Just focus on Fulham and we’ll take care of the rest there afterwards.”
Arsenal’s injury list is mounting with Kai Havertz hoping to face Atletico but is out against Fulham. Jurrien Timber is now sweating on playing again this season because he has not been able to step up his training after a groin injury.
Martin Odegaard is a worry because his lingering knee issue flared up again and Arteta talked about players needing to push themselves as the club is on the verge of history. But Arteta also talked about how PSG and Bayern were able to produce a spectacle because of one key reason: all their players are fit.
Arteta said: “Well, when I look at that game, Bayern v PSG, it’s probably the best game I ever witnessed in the quality of two teams and especially the individual quality the players delivered, I have never seen something like this.
“But when I look at the amount of minutes and the freshness of those players, then I’m not surprised. To deliver that much quality you have to be very fresh and the difference in the leagues and the way they compete is night and day. And you just have to see a lot of stats recently around it. We are comparing two different worlds.
“They have every player available and fit at their best. When you see, when you talk about the other two teams the other night (PSG and Bayern Munich), yeah? How many players were available? All of them, at their very best. That's the most important thing.’
“I want to think about all the turnarounds that we had that were so difficult that we won. But yes, we can learn from the positive ones, from the other ones, we know we want to win every single game, which is very difficult to do.
“We have prepared in the best possible way since the moment that the final whistle went in Atletico. We've done everything that we possibly can to give ourselves the best chance to recover, to bring the right energy, to prepare the game in the right way.”
There was also a clear message to Odegaard and his importance to the team for the run-in and Arsenal’s chance of glory. Arteta added: “He is the captain for a reason. He has a personality, an aura and a way to conduct and raise the standards which is great to see. And he does it whatever the circumstances.
“He is a player who brings us so much energy to the team as well because he’s always at it, he is always so focused, always very demanding. He’s not someone who needs to be talking constantly because he’s more about actions than talking but when he does talk I think it’s very impactful.”