Mikel Arteta hits nail on head with 'lucky' Arsenal comment after two defeats in a week

Arsenal have endured a difficult week as their season suffered two major setbacks. The Gunners missed the chance to move top of the table last Sunday, losing 2-0 at home to Aston Villa, before being knocked out of the Champions League by Bayern Munich on Wednesday.

While it means that Arsenal are solely focused on winning the Premier League, Mikel Arteta's side face an uphill task to end the club's 20-year wait for a league title. Manchester City are two points cleat at the top, meaning the Gunners must at least match their results and hope that Pep Guardiola's side slip up during the final six games of the season. Meanwhile, Arsenal are only above Liverpool on goal difference.

The two results may have damaged Arsenal's chances of ending the season with a trophy but Arteta has encouraged his squad to embrace the pressure. The Gunners boss viewed it as a privilege to be competing for major honours at this stage in a campaign and has challenged his players to find the right response against Wolves on Saturday night (7.30pm kick-off).

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"The players are all very lucky to have had the week that we've had. Because these are the weeks that we want and have been seeking for many years to have at Arsenal," Arteta said, reports the Mirror. "You have to deal with that. If you want to be in this position, you have to go through it and it's going to be tough. Against those opponents, the margins are minimal and you have to try to compete to be better than them.

"But maybe even if you are better, you don't win? Like what happened at home against Bayern and against Villa. Are you ready to react to that? If not you're not ready to be living these kinds of weeks and we want to be living these kinds of weeks.

"Don't feel sorry for yourself - if we want to be here we have to be prepared because this is a possibility."

Arsenal's title rivals, Man City and Liverpool, are also reeling from their respective exits from European competition. Pep Guardiola's side were knocked out of the Champions League by Real Madrid on penalties, while both Erling Haaland and Kevin De Bruyne asked to be substituted during the game.

Man City midfielder Rodri also recently admitted to struggling with fatigue due to the demands of the season. However, Arteta has insisted that his youthful Arsenal players are not faced with the same issues.

"I'm sure that the players are going to squeeze every drop of energy and effort and that they can," Arteta added. "There is still so much energy in this group, especially with what we are playing for. That's not going to be a concern for sure."