Arteta: There will be 'twists' for the top-four finish against Spurs

boss Mikel Arteta expects more "twists" as the Gunners battle for

spots with north London rivals Tottenham. 

Arteta's side appeared to turn a turnaround in 2022, when they climbed to fourth place in the

, but losses to Crystal Palace and Brighton and Hove Albion have given Spurs the upper hand. 

Antonio Conte's side leads fifth-placed Arsenal by three points, despite having played one fewer match, in the race for a spot in England's top four.

But, speaking before Saturday's match against Southampton, Arteta maintains that further changes and drama are to be expected as the season progresses. 

On Friday, when asked who was in charge of the top-four push, he said, "Whoever manages to win more games and play better." 

"There's going to be some twists still for sure and the pressure and situation is going to keep changing between now and the end of the season. We have to be focused on us and what we have to do.

"Every game [is important], but obviously when you lose, the next game takes more importance and we know that."

Despite the fact that Arsenal will go to Tottenham in the last week of the season in what is being framed as a battle for the final Champions League position, Arteta does not sense any more weight. 

"I think it's related to our history and we want to be not fourth, but third, second or first, and that's what we have to do," he added.

"That's always within every supporter and anybody who has any connection with the club, so the moment you see the team doing better and having better aspirations, your tendency is to get excited about it and I think that's the right reaction."

Arsenal started the 2021-22 season with three straight league losses in August, and a loss to Southampton would repeat the same unfavorable pattern.

Despite the fact that Arteta's club is in much better shape now, the Spaniard refuted accusations that the Gunners would have accepted for fifth place in the Premier League following their poor start. 

"At the start of the season? You cannot take anything because you don't know how things are going to develop," he continued.

"You could ask me a week into the season or two weeks before, I could maybe give you a different answer, but no, no."

Alexandre Lacazette

hasn't scored in the league since a goal against Southampton in December, despite being involved in seven goals in six Premier League games versus the Saints. 

Lacazette is said to have missed training in the middle of the week, but Arteta says there's a "strong chance" he'll play, and he praises Bukayo Saka, who is the only English player to have 50 or more shots and 50 or more opportunities created in the tournament this season.

"He's a great kid, and he has a really clear idea of what he needs to expect," he said of the England international. "The better he does, the more difficult they are going to try and make it for him, that's for sure.

"I think he needs the protection that all the players need at this level, nothing different, nothing special.

"The best players and the talented players are always going to be, closely looked at, and they are going to close the space and they are going to be tight on them.

"Bukayo has to recognize that is going to be the case. Referees have to recognize that as well, early in the game, and then try to protect them."

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