Arteta mustn't let red cards derail Arsenal's title charge

Mikel Arteta said it more in hope than expectation. "Believe me, come Sunday we'll be flying," he said after Arsenal's tepid 1-0 win over Shakhtar Donetsk in midweek.

- John Brewin

Arteta's glass half-full approach might have jarred in the light of Riccardo Calafiori adding to his injury list, but the Basque is no defeatist.

His belief in his players has been a key facet in Arteta making Arsenal the closest challengers of Manchester City.

Such assurance kept the Gunners in the hunt when most other teams would have faded in the wake of Pep Guardiola's team.

In doing so, Arsenal supplanted Liverpool as City's fiercest rivals.

This season has tested Arteta's positivity more than those two previous campaigns.

Calafiori's knee problem, not as bad as feared but likely to keep the Italian out for a few weeks, added to the long-term absence of playmaker and captain Martin Odegaard, and Bukayo Saka's fitness problems.