Mikel Arteta In his Friday news conference
emphasized the importance of Arsenal players adopting a “streetwise” mentality in the title race.
Following their 1-0 loss to Porto in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League, Arteta highlighted the need for greater seriousness from the team to overcome Porto in the second leg at the Emirates Stadium.
Asked whether his players are capable of being “bad guys” on the pitch, Arteta told a news conference on Friday:
“I don’t know [about being a] bad guy but you have to be tricky.
You have to be smart, you have to be streetwise, and you have to try to take advantages in every situation, and they know that.
“That’s a thing that has to be developed… the best players they have, they have that.”
Arsenal have been in superb form in the league in 2024 — they have scored 21 goals and conceded just two, winning five consecutive matches in the process.
Read Also: Europa League Last 16 Draw: Liverpool, West Ham, Brighton
A win over Newcastle on Saturday would move Arsenal to within two points of Premier League leaders Liverpool,
with Jurgen Klopp‘s team facing Chelsea in the Carabao Cup final on Sunday.
But Arteta said he thinks his team are being viewed as outsiders in the race for the Premier League title.
“I feel a lot of excitement, especially internally because we are right the mix and we want to continue to be there because we are in the Champions League.”
“We have a fantastic game to play at the Emirates and externally probably is different because the expectations are much more focused in the other two teams [Liverpool and Manchester City].”
The Arsenal head coach also said that Thomas Partey is “very close” to returning from injury, while Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko may also be fit enough to be included in the squad against Newcastle.
