The Gunners meanwhile, got back to winning ways in the league courtesy of a 3-0 triumph over Nottingham Forest at Emirates Stadium. Bukayo Saka, Thomas Partey and Ethan Nwaneri were all on target with Arteta boosted by the return of Riccardo Calafiori.
Injuries have plagued Arsenal for the first few months of the 2024/25 campaign and thus their form has taken a significant hit. As such, nine points is the gap between the Gunners and Liverpool, however there is still 26 games to play with the next two months likely to be crucial.
Firstly, the busy festive period sees 21 Premier League points up for grabs with Liverpool facing Manchester City, Newcastle and Tottenham during that spell. Secondly, the January transfer window will open and that could prove decisive in teams strengthening.
For Arsenal, though the current stance is to be reactive rather than proactive, Arteta and Co. may sense an opportunity to strike with Man City faltering. Plans for the upcoming two windows have already been discussed with Arteta making a big admission on the meeting he had with the Kroenke family in the United States earlier this month.
"Yeah, well, it is always really positive to spend time together," he said in a press conference. "Obviously we had time to talk about the windows, but as well about the club. How they are feeling about what we are doing, how we are feeling about where we want to take the club, the next direction, obviously Edu.
"It is a lot of topics, there, but again it is a joy to spend time with them because it’s a lot to learn. They have so much experience in sport. You feel the ambition, especially when you go out there and even that they are very far, how close they live every day with us, and they want to achieve together. It feels great."
In terms of potential signings, links to Newcastle's Alexander Isak continue to ramp up with Arsenal still in need of signing an elite-level striker. The Magpies are unlikely to sell mid-season but it is absolutely worth the Gunners trying given the title may be on the line.
Real Sociedad star Martin Zubimendi is another trending topic surrounding Arsenal with Thomas Partey and Jorginho possibly set to depart in the summer. As such, signing another midfielder and doing so with six months to adapt could be extremely beneficial to Arteta.
The latest big Arsenal transfer rumour involves Real Madrid starlet Arda Guler with some suggesting he could follow in the footsteps of club captain Martin Odegaard by joining in a winter window after struggling to make regular appearances at Los Blancos.
With that being said, the Turkiye international was handed a start by Carlo Ancelotti for the 3-0 win over Leganes this past Sunday. However, an approach cannot be ruled out given Arteta's eagerness to help talented players reach their best levels after a dip in form.
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