Arsenal refuse to concede title hopes after squandering advantage – Arteta

Arsenal's Spanish manager Mikel Arteta was seen observing the proceedings before the English FA Cup quarter final football match between Southampton and Arsenal at St Mary’s Stadium in Southampton, southern England on April 4, 2026, in a photo taken by Glyn KIRK.

n

Mikel Arteta remains confident that Arsenal can still win the Premier League title, despite being overtaken by Manchester City, and is counting on his team to bounce back from recent setbacks when they face Newcastle at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday.

n

Manchester City's 1-0 win at Burnley on Wednesday pushed them to the top of the league, relegating Arsenal to second place, with the Gunners now relying on avoiding defeat against Newcastle to reclaim top spot, having been level on points with City but behind on goals scored.

n

Less than two weeks ago, Arsenal were in a strong position to win the title for the first time since 2004, having built a nine-point lead over City, but damaging losses against Bournemouth and City have altered the landscape of the title race.

n

Arsenal's history of blowing substantial leads in title races, including in 2023 and 2024, when City ultimately won the trophy, has not deterred Arteta, who expects his team to recover from last Sunday's 2-1 loss at City when they host Newcastle this weekend.

n

Arteta expressed his optimism, saying "Win tomorrow, game one win and then we’ll be much closer, I have belief in our players and our people and what we want to achieve," and emphasized the need for his team to focus on the task at hand, with "The energy raised and the belief raised, The clarity in what we have to do it cannot be better."

n

With five games remaining, Arteta is eager for his team to seize the initiative, saying "Five games to go, Tomorrow game one, all in, let’s go for it," and acknowledged that Arsenal are still in contention for two major competitions, remarking "Two big competitions to play for and everything to play for."

n

Arteta also noted that if someone had told him at the beginning of the season that Arsenal would be in their current position, he would have accepted it, saying "If somebody had told us at the beginning of the season we would have taken it, We are so excited."

n

Arsenal are set to be boosted by the returns of Bukayo Saka and Riccardo Calafiori from injury against Newcastle, with Saka having missed the last five matches with an Achilles problem and Calafiori sidelined for three games with a knock.

n

Manchester City's 1-0 win at Burnley on Wednesday took them to the top of the league for the first time since August 2025, with Pep Guardiola's men hitting peak form, while Arsenal have struggled with only one win from their last six matches in all competitions.

n

Arsenal will play twice in the league before City's next top-flight match, as City are set to face Southampton in the FA Cup semi-final on Saturday, giving Arteta's team an opportunity to regain momentum.

n

Arteta drew on his experience of winning the Scottish Premiership with Rangers on goal difference in 2003, recalling that he scored a penalty in the closing seconds on the last day of the season, and said "I took the penalty and we won the league by one goal difference, It doesn’t get better than that, One of the best feelings I had in my career."

n

Arteta emphasized the importance of seizing the moment, saying "We are just talking about a lot of possibilities, Those five games start tomorrow," and urged his team to give it their all, saying "Everything you have, you have to put it on the table, and you have to make it happen."