Enjoy being at the top, Arteta tells Arsenal players

Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has told his players to enjoy every moment of their stay at the top of the Premier League table.

The Gunners returned to the summit following an easy night against rivals Chelsea on Tuesday at the Emirates.

Arsenal proved too hot for the Blues after a 3-1 win in the London derby, with Martin Odegaard the star of the evening.

The Arsenal captain scored two goals with Gabriel Jesus adding a third in a blistering first half display while Noni Madueke netted the consolation for Frank Lampard’s side.

Following the win over Chelsea, Arsenal ended a run of four matches in the league to leapfrog defending champions, Manchester City.

City replaced the Gunners at the top for the first time in 247 days last week after that dominant 4-1 win at the Etihad.

However, Arteta has told his players to enjoy their moment at the top as he remains confident that his side is still in the title race with Pep Guardiola’s City, who are two points behind but have two games in hand.

“It is four games to go, we are at the top right now,” he said after the crucial win at the Emirates per Fotmob.

“We cannot do that (let heads drop), to be where we are after 10 months against the team we are fighting against, being there and having the possibility to be top – we have to enjoy it and embrace it, maximise the opportunity that we have because we don’t know what is going to happen.”

After the humiliating defeat at the Etihad the previous game, the former City assistant manager believes his Gunners are back to their best following a change approach.

“We wanted to have a very different approach to the game, and we did it right from the beginning,” he added.

“The team is back to its best. We wanted to prove we had that fire in the belly. I could see that in the last few days, and we prepared (for) the game well.

“Mentally we arrived in the right mood and with the right level of energy. Everything went for us as well, which is important.

“We’ve had a couple of difficult weeks with very different games, with a lot of emotions involved. We’re back to the top of the league – let’s see what happens.”

Arteta and his Arsenal will switch attention to the next battle which sees them take on another top four side in high-flying Newcastle United at the weekend.