Arsenal ready to recover from troubled period: Arteta

London (AFP) – Mikel Arteta expects Arsenal to bounce back from their nightmare spell in Sunday’s crunch clash with Chelsea after sensing his players’ hunger during a team meeting this week.

Released: 11.08.2024 – 15:32Changed: 08/11/2024 – 15:30

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Arteta’s side are winless in their last three Premier League matches and have won just three of their last eight matches in the competition.

Having beaten Inter Milan 1-0 in the Champions League on Wednesday, hot on the heels of last weekend’s defeat to Newcastle, the north Londoners are desperate to end their slump in this weekend’s London derby at Stamford Bridge.

Arsenal were expected to challenge for the title after finishing second to Manchester City in each of the last two seasons.

Arteta is confident his side are up to the task of improving their season.

“Obviously, when you don’t win, it affects your mood and energy. The positive thing is that there is no one inside or outside this building who would like to win more than me,” he told reporters on Friday.

“I had a meeting with them today about this, and I feel it right away.

“They are attentive, they are hungry, they want to work. Their desire is incredible. It’s a pleasure to work with them.”

Chelsea currently sit one place above the fifth-placed Gunners, who are seven points behind leaders Liverpool.

Arsenal’s only wins in their last six matches in all competitions came against Shakhtar Donetsk in Europe and second division Preston in the League Cup.

Another defeat this weekend would be a huge blow to Arsenal’s hopes of winning the title for the first time since 2004.

“We don’t need a reboot”

The Gunners were hampered by a long-term injury to captain Martin Odegaard, as well as a string of red cards for Declan Rice, William Saliba and Leandro Trossard.

Despite all the difficulties, Arteta is confident they can get back into contention.

“The problem is completely definable and completely solvable,” the Spaniard added.

“Having watched the Inter match twice, I have never seen my team do this to anyone. You wonder how the hell we didn’t win that game.

“The team is playing 10 times better than last season, but at the end of the day you have to win. If you don’t do that, the profits get smaller and smaller.”

Odegaard came off the bench as a late substitute against Inter as the Norwegian midfielder finally returned from an ankle problem picked up while on international duty in September.

He could start against Chelsea and Arteta said: “Of course, having a player like Martin helps because he has shown how important he is over the last three or four years.”

“He tried his best to be involved in the game while he was injured, but not having him in the team is a different matter.”

“We hope he helps because he’s been incredibly good. He’s been out for a while, so let’s see how he affects the team.”