Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta emphasized that his team holds a significant psychological advantage over Premier League title contenders Manchester City and Liverpool.
Currently, ahead of midweek fixtures, Arsenal sits atop the table, level on points with Liverpool but ahead on goal difference, with City trailing by one point.
Despite this, Manchester City, under Pep Guardiola’s leadership, remains the favorite for many, especially with a game in hand over their rivals, potentially paving the way for a fourth consecutive title.
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The dynamics of the title race underwent a notable shift two weeks ago when City’s dominant 5-1 victory over Luton propelled them to the top, while both Liverpool and Arsenal faltered against Crystal Palace and Aston Villa, respectively.
Liverpool’s Trent Alexander-Arnold suggested that Arsenal’s defeat might have been influenced by playing after their opponents, highlighting the psychological aspects of the race.
This week, Arsenal will take the field first among the three title contenders, facing Chelsea on Tuesday night. Subsequently, Liverpool will play their Merseyside derby against Everton on Wednesday, followed by City’s match against Brighton on Thursday.
Arteta acknowledged the advantage of playing first, stating, “That helps, that really helps because then you are winning your matches and making the margins smaller and smaller. That’s the only thing we can do at the moment because it’s not in our hands. Winning as a consequence of that and bringing the margins shorter and that’s something which is positive.”
Arsenal is scheduled to play first among the three title rivals in two of the remaining four gameweeks, with the added benefit of not playing last in any of them.