Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta admits to having sleepless nights before Liverpool showdown

Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has confessed to facing a restless night ahead of their crucial Premier League clash with Liverpool.

Despite usually sleeping “like a baby” before significant matches, the uncertainty surrounding the fitness of key players Bukayo Saka and Jurrien Timber, along with the suspension of William Saliba and potential absence of Riccardo Calafiori, has left him anxious.

However, Arteta remains optimistic, encouraging his team to view the match as a “beautiful day” rather than dwelling on the potential setback that could leave them trailing seven points behind Liverpool.

He said: “Normally I prefer to go to bed with the line up in my head so I can sleep like a baby. But sometimes it can not be as you have to wait for the next day. Sometimes two days before.

“Or just three days before you already have the idea ‘against this team this is what I am going to do’ but when you have uncertainty with injuries that is tricky.

“But when it comes down to reacting against a difficult situation, we don’t feel sorry for ourselves – we face it.”

With Saka’s knee injury and Timber’s muscle problem still under assessment, Oleksandr Zinchenko and Jakub Kiwior may be called upon to bolster the defence against Liverpool’s formidable attack led by Mohamed Salah.

Arteta has rallied his Arsenal squad with a call to action, saying: “But the possibility is tomorrow – let’s have a beautiful day on Sunday when we really perform.

“We are who we are and we will demand the game in the manner that we want. This has to be entrenched in our team.”

Arteta also praised his team’s potential and mindset: “We are a team that knows how good we are as well and how difficult we can be for the opponents. And having that ruthless mentality is something that I love.”