Mikel Arteta said Liverpool's eight-point lead at the top of the Premier League will be "extremely difficult" to maintain ahead of their meeting with Manchester City on Sunday.
Liverpool have impressed under new head coach Arne Slot, winning 17 of their first 19 games under the Dutchman in all competitions this season (D1 L1).
Slot's side welcome Pep Guardiola's out-of-form City to Anfield this weekend, knowing a victory would put them 11 points clear of the reigning top-flight champions.
Arsenal find themselves in fifth ahead of their meeting with West Ham in Saturday's late kick-off and nine points behind Liverpool after 12 games.
But the Gunners have found themselves in a similar position to Liverpool, holding an eight-point lead of their own over City last season before losing the title despite spending 248 days of the 2023-24 campaign at the summit.
"We've been there and to sustain it for 10 months is extremely difficult," said Arteta. "Suddenly, when you think you have it, one day it collapses.
"It can be a result, through injuries or other kinds of decisions. And it can happen in any moment. We have to be ready for that.
"But it's something we can't control. What we can control is be at our very best."
Asked if Arsenal are capable of catching Liverpool this season, Arteta replied: "I really believe in my team, yes."
Ahead of this weekend's blockbuster fixture between Liverpool and City, the Reds will be buoyed by their impressive Champions League win over Real Madrid in midweek.
Slot's side remain the only side in the competition with a 100% record, while also topping the pile in the Premier League with 10 wins from their first 12 fixtures.
Liverpool’s only top-flight defeat so far this season was a 1-0 loss to Nottingham Forest at Anfield.
They’ve won seven of their eight league games since then (D1), with that draw coming against Arsenal at the Emirates, scoring at least twice in seven of those games.
And Arteta believes that his team will need to be perfect if the Reds keep up their current form, starting against London rivals West Ham.
"If they continue then that's for sure, with the numbers they're producing and the amount of games they're winning," added Arteta.
"The focus is on us to maintain the consistency especially and performances that will give us the right to win games, keep the availability in the squad. This is a long run.
"Winning lifts the energy and our confidence up. We've had two big wins for us and now it's about consistency and getting that momentum, taking it further against a good opponent [West Ham] and try to replicate the performance to win the game."
Arteta also suggested that Guardiola's side are not out of the race just yet, despite failing to win in their last six games in all competitions (D1 L5).
And Anfield has been a difficult ground for the Citizens in recent years. They have won just one of their last 21 Premier League away games against Liverpool (D7 L13), beating them 4-1 in February 2021. They’ve not won on Merseyside with fans in attendance since May 2003 (2-1).
But City have been hampered by several injuries to key first-team players this term, with Mateo Kovacic, Jeremy Doku, John Stones, Oscar Bobb, Kevin De Bruyne and Jack Grealish all facing recent fitness issues.
"Even with those injuries, they deserved to win every game," said Arteta. "If you look at their stats and everything they do, they have always been better than the opposition.
"This is football. You deserve and you don't win it, but there's a reason for that."
'Determined' Postecoglou aiming to turn Tottenham's fortunes around
Ange Postecoglou said he was not "hurting" but "determined" to turn Tottenham's fortunes around after their inconsistent season continued at Bournemouth on Thursday.
Postecoglou watched on as his side slipped to a 1-0 defeat to the Cherries at the Vitality Stadium, with Dean Huijsen's first-half header sealing the victory for the hosts.
The result saw Tottenham slip to 10th in the Premier League, having won just one of their last six games in all competitions, with that victory coming against Manchester City.
Following the full-time whistle, several Tottenham fans confronted Postecoglou as he made his way over to the away end, with the Australian engaging in conversation.
This Sunday, London rivals Chelsea are the visitors to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, and Postecoglou is aiming to put things right on home soil.
"I'm not hurting, I'm determined, that's all. I don't want to say it's unacceptable (the fans' abuse) because it is what it is," Postecoglou told reporters.
"I've lived in this world for long enough to know that when people aren't happy they'll express their opinions, and I'm never going to hide, I'm never going to shirk that responsibility. I'll take (it) on board.
"Is it nice? No, because like I said last night, I'm not just a manager, I'm a human being like everyone else. None of us like to hear those sorts of things, but it is what it is.
"It doesn't disappoint me, it doesn't frustrate me, it doesn't make me angry; I'm just as determined as ever to get it right. Not because of that, but because of my resolve to bring success to the football club."
Postecoglou said he was still searching for answers to Spurs’ inconsistency, and is also hoping to improve his own record in London derbies.
After winning his first four games in charge of Tottenham against teams across the capital (W2 D2), Postecoglou has now lost seven of his last 13 such matches (W4 D2).
Adding to his woes was an injury to Ben Davies, who was playing as centre back in the absence of injured duo Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven.
“Ben will go for a scan today so we’ll find out more," Postecoglou said. “Cuti’s (Romero) due to training, but we’ll see how he goes on Saturday."
“Chelsea are going really well, they are in a good space at the moment with a fairly healthy squad and in good form.
"Always a tough game against them but we are at home, and we need to make sure we produce a performance like we have in the other games," he added.
Van Nistelrooy hints at January arrivals ahead of Brighton test
Leicester City boss Ruud van Nistelrooy said he will have money available to spend in January as his side welcome Brighton to the King Power Stadium this Sunday.
The Foxes posted an impressive 3-1 win against West Ham in Van Nistelrooy's first Premier League game in charge on Tuesday, with captain Jamie Vardy, Bilal El Khannouss and Patson Daka finding the target.
However, with Leicester still only four points clear of safety with 13 points from 14 matches, the former Netherlands striker hinted at incomings during the winter transfer window.
"There were conversations about it before I signed. We said that there is no rush to do things and I agree with that," Van Nistelrooy said ahead of the Brighton game.
"The squad we have is getting all of the chances to prove themselves over this month. There is time after that to make a good assessment and we make a decision in January."
Meanwhile, Brighton are gunning for the Champions League places, sitting fifth with 23 points.
Despite a 3-1 defeat to Fulham in their last game, Fabian Hurzeler's side are only five points behind second-placed Chelsea.
Hurzeler, who will return to the Brighton dugout after serving a touchline suspension, acknowledged that Leicester will be a tough challenge for his side.
"They have quality, they play good football. They were very effective against West Ham. It will be interesting to see where they are," the 31-year-old German said.
"They have had a good start [under Van Nistelrooy] so it is up to us to break that up and get back the points we lost against Fulham."
Danny Welbeck, who has scored four league goals against Leicester, is an injury doubt for Brighton, while the Foxes will be without Facundo Buonanotte, with the loanee not eligible to face his parent club.
"Facundo is doing a great job with Leicester, he is developing well. He works hard, and he has big potential," Hurzeler said.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Leicester - Jamie Vardy
Vardy remains Leicester's biggest goal threat at the age of 37, with the captain also their top Premier League scorer this season with five goals.
He has also scored 11 goals in his last 14 league appearances against teams with Albion in their name, most recently netting against West Brom in April this year in the Championship.
Brighton - Danny Welbeck
After starting the season with six goals in nine games, Welbeck has failed to find the target in his last three outings, but he will be confident of finding the back of the net against one of his favoured opponents, should he be fit to feature.
He has scored four goals in 11 Premier League appearances against Leicester, with these strikes being worth seven points to his respective sides.
MATCH PREDICTION: BRIGHTON WIN
While Brighton are favoured by Opta's data-led simulations to win on Sunday, they have won none of their six Premier League away games against Leicester (D3 L3), with their last league victory at the King Power Stadium coming in the Championship in April 2014 (4-1).
The Seagulls have also lost five of their last six top-flight away games played on a Sunday, as many as in their previous 16 such games (W7 D4). The only exception in this current run was a 5-0 win at Sheffield United in February.
Five of Brighton’s last seven Premier League games against promoted sides have been drawn (W1 L1), including each of the last three in a row. The last team to draw four consecutive such games were Newcastle in the 2021-22 campaign.
But having won six of their first eight Premier League meetings with Brighton (D2), Leicester are now winless in their last four against the Seagulls (D2 L2).
However, the Foxes will be looking to build on their win over West Ham. They had seven big chances in their win on Tuesday in Van Nistelrooy's first game in charge, the joint-most big chances on record (since 2010-11) a team has had in their first Premier League match under a new manager, level with Manuel Pellegrini’s Manchester City against Newcastle (August 2013).
Van Nistelrooy will also be hoping to join Claudio Ranieri (first two) and Craig Shakespeare (first five) in winning their first two games in charge of the Foxes in the Premier League.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
Brighton – 52.6%
Leicester – 24.2%
Draw – 23.2%
Van Nistelrooy hints at January arrivals at Leicester ahead of Brighton test
Leicester City boss Ruud van Nistelrooy said he will have money available to spend in January as his side welcome Brighton to the King Power Stadium this Sunday.
The Foxes posted an impressive 3-1 win against West Ham in Van Nistelrooy's first Premier League game in charge on Tuesday, with captain Jamie Vardy, Bilal El Khannouss and Patson Daka finding the target.
However, with Leicester still only four points clear of safety with 13 points from 14 matches, the former Netherlands striker hinted at incomings during the winter transfer window.
"There were conversations about it before I signed. We said that there is no rush to do things and I agree with that," Van Nistelrooy said ahead of the Brighton game.
"The squad we have is getting all of the chances to prove themselves over this month. There is time after that to make a good assessment and we make a decision in January."
Meanwhile, Brighton are gunning for Champions League places, sitting fifth with 23 points. Despite a 3-1 defeat to Fulham in their last game, Fabian Hurzeler's side are only five points behind second-placed Chelsea.
Hurzeler, who will return to the Brighton dugout after serving a touchline suspension, acknowledged that Leicester will be a tough challenge for his side.
"They have quality, they play good football. They were very effective against West Ham. It will be interesting to see where they are," the 31-year-old German said.
"They have had a good start [under Van Nistelrooy] so it is up to us to break that up and get back the points we lost against Fulham."
Danny Welbeck, who has scored four league goals against Leicester, is an injury doubt for Brighton, while the Foxes will be without Facundo Buonanotte, with the loanee not eligible to face his parent club.
"Facundo is doing a great job with Leicester, he is developing well. He works hard, and he has big potential," Hurzeler said.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Leicester - Jamie Vardy
Vardy remains Leicester's biggest goal threat at the age of 37, with the captain also their top Premier League scorer this season with five goals.
He has also scored 11 goals in his last 14 league appearances against teams with Albion in their name, most recently netting against West Brom in April this year in the Championship.
Brighton - Danny Welbeck
After starting the season with six goals in nine games, Welbeck has failed to find the target in his last three outings, but he will be confident of finding the back of the net against one of his favoured opponents, should he be fit to feature.
He has scored four goals in 11 Premier League appearances against Leicester, with these strikes being worth seven points to his respective sides.
MATCH PREDICTION: BRIGHTON WIN
While Brighton are favoured by Opta's data-led simulations to win on Sunday, they have won none of their six Premier League away games against Leicester (D3 L3), with their last league victory at the King Power Stadium coming in the Championship in April 2014 (4-1).
The Seagulls have also lost five of their last six top-flight away games played on a Sunday, as many as in their previous 16 such games (W7 D4). The only exception in this current run was a 5-0 win at Sheffield United in February.
Five of Brighton’s last seven Premier League games against promoted sides have been drawn (W1 L1), including each of the last three in a row. The last team to draw four consecutive such games were Newcastle in the 2021-22 campaign.
But having won six of their first eight Premier League meetings with Brighton (D2), Leicester are now winless in their last four against the Seagulls (D2 L2).
However, the Foxes will be looking to build on their win over West Ham. They had seven big chances in their win on Tuesday in Van Nistelrooy's first game in charge, the joint-most big chances on record (since 2010-11) a team has had in their first Premier League match under a new manager, level with Manuel Pellegrini’s Man City against Newcastle (August 2013).
Van Nistelrooy will also be hoping to join Claudio Ranieri (first two) and Craig Shakespeare (first five) to have won their first two in charge of the Foxes in the Premier League.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
Brighton – 52.6%
Leicester – 24.2%
Draw – 23.2%
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