At a Glance:
- Arsenal and Manchester City are joint top on 70 points with five games to go
- William Saliba believes Arsenal players must maintain faith
- Saliba also says he ‘dreams’ of lifting the Premier League title
It has been a tense time for Arsenal at the moment, with the 2-1 loss to Manchester City and City’s subsequent 1-0 victory over Burnley meaning the clubs are joint top of the league.
This is despite the fact that some players have rarely had a bad performance all year, with Declan Rice recently given a PFA Player of the Year shout by Ian Wright, while Arsenal’s defence has only shipped 26 goals in 33 games—the lowest in the league.
At the heart of this defence is William Saliba, with Saliba easily having a case right now as being the best defender in the Premier League; his partnership with Gabriel has been nothing short of a brick wall over the past four seasons.
However, ahead of the final five games of the season, the French centre-back has come out with a brutal, yet determined, statement for the rest of the squad and himself to keep in mind before and during every game.
READ MORE: Why Arsenal are secretly devastated about not signing Man United’s Matheus Cunha
Arsenal squad are ‘ready’ to cope with pressure and are willing to ‘die’ for the club, says Saliba
Speaking to the club via Arsenal.com, 24-year-old Saliba affirmed that the only way Arsenal will fend off Manchester City is by giving it absolutely everything.
“We need to be calm. We need to die on the pitch as well, because it’s [now or never]. Now we have to go [and push], and we need everyone: the supporters, the team, the staff, everyone, because we have to do it now. After that, it’s too late,” Saliba states.
On Arsenal’s upcoming game vs. Newcastle this weekend, the Frenchman does not seem too worried.
“You have to give everything and die on the pitch. Last game we wanted to win, and we didn’t. But it’s not finished. Now we know what we have coming, and we know what we have to do if we want to win the league. We have to start on Saturday.”
“We have good pressure with us because when you play football, you want to play these kinds of games. We’re ready for that.”
Arsenal have not won the league since 2004—a team that boasted some of the greatest Arsenal players of all time, including Thierry Henry, who has issued his own statement towards the current team, Dennis Bergkamp, and Patrick Vieira.
On achieving the club’s first title in 22 years, Saliba says: “We haven’t won the Premier League since 2004. It’s been a while. It means a lot for us and for me personally. I’ve been here for four years and I’ve always finished second. If we change that this season, it will be a massive success for us and for me. I’m sure we will do that…. when you’re close to achieving your dreams, sometimes when you sleep, you think about that.”
Mikel Arteta statement reveals the psychological effects of the title fight for Saliba & co.
In the Friday press conference ahead of the game against Newcastle, Arsenal head coach Mikel Arteta clarified how important keeping tabs on the players’ mentality will be ahead of the last few games in April and May.
“The psychological effect [of the past few months] was that we were getting chased for many months. So, what is better, what is worse? At the end of the day, we know what the best thing is, to win the next game. So the psychological effect is tough regardless of where you are because you have to win the game,” Arteta said.
The team will play Newcastle at home on April 24th, before Fulham at home, West Ham away, Burnley at home, and Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park will end off the Gunners’ Premier League campaign—and that is not including the added pressure of two Champions League semi-final legs versus Atletico Madrid.
