We want to be STRONG! | Mikel Arteta on potential January transfers for Arsenal

How nice was it during this very hectic period of the season to be able to take a few days off for the players and for you personally? Well, it's a beautiful time of the year, especially when you have kids and they still have this magic feeling about it. We had the opportunity this year because of the schedule to have some time off as well and to enjoy that period in a different way. How is the squad, injury-wise and specifically with Tom Sparty and Jürgen Klopp? No, nothing has changed yet. With those two, we're not going to have them available, unfortunately, yet. Then we have the suspension of Kai, so I think it's five players missing the squad. We're a bit short, but the team has been doing well and we still have a lot of players very willing to play. Is there a chance we can see those players before they go away? There is a chance, yes, but we have to see. They haven't trained with the team yet, so they're still far away from that, but hopefully they can evolve in the right way. Do you know when they're leaving yet? I know some clubs are in discussions with the nations about when they're leaving. Yes, there are some talks between the clubs and the federations at the moment and we haven't decided yet when is the best way to do it. If you win tomorrow, obviously you'll go back to the top of the table. A lot of this work was made of that last season. Does it feel different this time around? Do you feel more confident this time? It feels similar. It's always a really good feeling to have the chance to be at the top of the Premier League with understanding as well how competitive it is, that it's more competitive than last year and more difficult than last year. Tomorrow we're going to have a really difficult opponent in front of us and we're going to have to be at our best. It's January, but in terms of the transfer window, any business done, how important will it be to get it done, get it done early, so you're at the best position possible? That's a different matter. We're just focusing on the game of tomorrow, the importance of that one, the importance of Fulham, the importance of the FA Cup, and then we'll have a little break there to think and assess the options that we have and how we can be better. How difficult is tomorrow's game? Very difficult. They are a really good side, really well coached, incredible the success that they had last year, the position that they are again this season, so they're showing a lot of consistency. You see the games that they beat Spurs, they beat Manchester United, so that tells you everything and that's the difficulty of the game and tomorrow that we're going to have to be really, really good. Odegaard was strong out of possession against Liverpool, he was winning his second goal against Juventus. Recently he's been playing a much deeper role in midfield, helping Arsenal play at the back, and he's generally being a lot more influential in goal. Previously he was like a second striker, being direct and not so attacking. Do you see your captain's strengths going more in build-up play? Well, there are certain games that require certain things from certain players and we have used Martin to accommodate the needs that the team had against certain behaviours and certain challenges that the opponent puts us to make us better and that's a big quality of his. You have mentioned as well the defensive part, which is really impressive and I'm really happy with that because it's a part of the game that we want to transform and keep evolving. Martinelli has also been a great player for you, he has a very high feeling. Recently there's been a lot of attention on his decision-making in front of goal When it comes to goalkeepers in particular, what do you think is the best way for him to improve on these things, or do you think it's more mentality and confidence of him for the moment? Well, being open first, working hard and practising the situation that you face in the game as much as possible and then having the courage to do it time and time and time again. And he's one of the best in the world at that. Last year you celebrated against West Ham and came back when you were down 3-1. I remember the atmosphere and how the fans really lifted the squad. You have three London derbies in a row coming up and you never had to lift the extra competition. What's your message to the fans ahead of those games? First of all, thank you for everything that they've done throughout the year and the way they have supported and inspired the team. And for tomorrow, please go to that stadium and get it rocking, get behind the team, inspire them again. And the team is going to try to do everything that we can to get them out of the seats. But it's going to be the last game of the year in front of them. So I think it's a special moment. So let's make it beautiful. I hope so. But we have to prove it every day. And the competition, it's incredible this season, how difficult it is to win every single game. You can see the results and how surprised you get every time you see the scores on your app. And it's the beauty of this league, that tomorrow you're going to have to be so good again to beat West Ham. And the next day to go to Fulham, it's going to be so tough. And that's the demands and that's where we are. When you look at managing this league that they have managed for so long, they've been more successful than him, it's not easy. And how long in the teams that he's done it as well and how he's done it, I think. Obviously, I know him and I love him a lot. And I'm so grateful for everything that he did for me and the times that we had together. But I think he's an outstanding manager. And he does it in a way that it's, in my opinion, very, very special. We don't make him too much noise. But what he has accomplished again at West Ham, I think it's remarkable. I'm getting old, I think, man. Well, I'm surprised, but as well, it tells you a lot, how difficult this job is and to keep in the job and the amount of clubs that are changing managers. Because four years before, probably that number would have been very different. It's what it is. That's the context that we live in. And let's keep going. Difficult to put something into it. Sometimes decision-making, sometimes scoring, hitting the post, missing a chance, receiving a ball to score are details. And he's really trying. He's a massive threat for us and everything that he generates, not only with the ball, without the ball as well. The amount of times that he's threatening the back line, the pressure that he puts in that back line. It's a key player for us and things will happen again. I think confidence is not a problem for Gabi. Sometimes the efficiency or putting the break down and lifting your head up and making that decision for everybody is the most difficult thing to do. Finding that composure and timing inside the box, but certainly lack of confidence or try is not going to be an issue for him. You said about how your squad is quite tight, but looking ahead to January, do you feel in a position where you can't afford to let anything go? Well, at the moment it's very difficult. We are really short. We have positions that we've been very exposed for the last six weeks. And hopefully we're going to get players back. In what condition and when, that's a question mark. And as well, because we have some long-term injuries still for certain players that give us a lot of versatility. And that's an issue. We have certain target ideas. If things happen as well, we don't know how the squad is going to look in two weeks' time. And you have to be always prepared for that. But it's a very, very tricky market that shifts very quickly and it's quite unpredictable as well. And you have to be prepared. We'll be prepared and we'll try to make the right calls. If there is something that we can improve the squad and that needs to appear and we cannot fulfil it with players here, we're always going to be open to that because we want to be stronger. Pax are in their joint top for goals off the counter-attack. Obviously, Kudu's against the bow and they've formed a very deadly trio. How do you plan to stop that or prevent it from happening against your side? Yeah, they are. When they have open spaces, they combine really well. They attack in certain areas and it's very tricky to control them. It's obviously the areas where you give the ball away that are critical as well because that obviously puts them in a good starting position. So we'll try to nullify their strengths, like they have many others as well, tomorrow and try to play in our strengths.