One Arsenal player has now admitted that his legs are starting to feel tired ahead of Tuesday’s huge clash with Chelsea.
Having secured the win and three points against Wolverhampton Wanderers on Saturday, Mikel Arteta will hope that his side has their confidence back.
Although they played admirably at times against Bayern Munich, it felt as if the Aston Villa loss ultimately was playing on the Arsenal players’ minds.
It was a damaging week for their aspirations this season, but all this team can do now is win their remaining five games.
Of course, that’ll be no easy task given the opposition Mikel Arteta’s team still have to face.
As well as this clash with Maurcio Pochettino’s Chelsea tomorrow, Arsenal then face the small matter of a North London Derby.
And given the way the fixtures fall, Arsenal could still be four points ahead of Manchester City when their rivals kick off on Sunday if both teams win their fixtures till that point.
And as well as mainting their superior goal difference, Arsenal need to create as much ‘scoreboard pressure’ as they can for Pep Guardiola’s team to navigate.
William Saliba admits he’s feeling tired ahead of Arsenal’s London derby with Chelsea
All that being said, this certainly isn’t when Arsenal will want their players feeling fatigued, either mentally or physically.
But such is the consistency of Arsenal’s XI, it’s almost bound to be the case.
And to that point, William Saliba has just admitted he’s been feeling tired in an interview with The Standard.
Saliba said that rest can wait until after these next five games, but admitted that the minutes were taking their toll.
He said: “It is a very big week, I will have an ice bath, massage and do my best, but it is more mentally.
“Our legs are tired, but this is football. We play with our heads, that’s it. We have to push and give everything we have. We don’t have a choice, we have to play, it’s the end of the season.
“We have to push for the last five League games and we will rest after. That’s why we are top — we have good players who don’t give up and sprint even at the last minute.”
Does Mikel Arteta need to rotate his players more regularly next season?
If you look at the most minutes played in each position in the Premier League this season, the numbers are slightly concerning from an Arsenal perspective.
Yes, it’s excellent news that players like William Saliba are staying so fit and available, but the minutes seem to be taking a toll.
For example, the £27m-man has the joint most minutes played of any defender this season alongside Wolves’ Max Kilman on 2,970 minutes – no Man City player enters the top 10.
Declan Rice is third in minutes for midfielders playing 2,780 – again, no Man City player is in the top 10 either.
And when it comes to forwards Bukayo Saka has is in fourth place with 2,593 minutes, with City’s Julian Alvarez in joint seventh with 2,461.
Perhaps Mikel Arteta feels he needs a better squad before he can rotate his players more, or perhaps it’s because of those who have been unavailable.
But either way, it seems to be something that needs to change.
And it’s certainly understandable that Saliba is feeling tired, and he won’t be the only Arsenal player.
All that being said, Jose Mourinho has just said he’s got one question he wants to ask Mikel Arteta.
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