Every word Mikel Arteta said on Gabriel injury, Pep Guardiola and Thomas Partey contract

Mikel Arteta has spoken to the press ahead of Arsenal's Premier League clash with West Ham United at the London Stadium.

The Gunners go into the game off the back of a superb 5-1 win over Sporting CP in midweek. They seem to be finding form at the perfect time given that title rivals Manchester City and Liverpool face off against each other this weekend.

City look to have massively dropped off in recent weeks and are winless in six matches. Their most recent match left Pep Guardiola scratching parts of his face off in frustration as he watched his side surrender a 3-0 lead against Feyenoord.

READ MORE: Mikel Arteta delivers cryptic three-word message on Gabriel Magalhaes injury vs West Ham

READ MORE: Arsenal injury latest as three players set to miss West Ham with Gabriel update

Arteta was asked questions on all this and more at the Sobha Realty Centre on Friday morning. Read everything he had to say below.

Any team news?

Not a lot because we have another training session. We have to see how the boys are today. A few weren’t able to train yesterday, but hopefully yes today. We will have to wait and see.

Gabriel?

Wait and see.

Will you give us anything more on him?

No because I can’t. It’s not that I don’t want to.

Do you feel you have your Arsenal back after these past two games?

I don’t link character to winning. This team showed unbelievable character against Inter and we lost, unbelievable character against Chelsea and we didn’t win despite being the better team. Same players, same intentions. Being more efficient and winning matches. That’s the difference.

What relationship do you have with Lopetegui?

I know him, I have huge admiration for what he’s done in the game. He’s from the same area as I am in Spain. Obviously it’s a team that are now on a high after their big win against Newcastle away. It’s always a really tough opponent so we know that.

Is there a feeling you need to be near-perfect to catch Liverpool?

If they continue that way that’s for sure. The results they are producing, the amount of games they are winning. But the focus is just on us. If we keep winning games, maintaining the consistency in terms of performances that’s going to give us a better chance of winning. Keep the availability because this is a long run.

Will you be watching City vs Liverpool?

100%. It’s a big match, a beautiful match to watch. Two of the best teams in Europe facing each other. So it’s a big one.

Do you have a preference on who you want to win?

Yeah, Arsenal tomorrow. That’s the preference. We will see. It’s something that we cannot control.

Only one of your next 13 games is outside London. How big could that be?

Less travelling is always better. It’s crazy that we have that many games so close to us. I think it helps, because the amount of games that we have to play in that period is very high.

Will we see Lewis-Skelly in midfield with more depth at left-back now?

That’s an option. He can play in three different positions. He can play as a holder, he can play as a left attacking midfielder. So gaps for him.

Will you always overload on the right or is the plan to do more on the left?

Not always. It’s in relation to the opponent, it’s in relation to the chemistry and quality of our players. In relation to our opponent we will do different things as well.

What have you made of West Ham?

Various ways to create big problems. They are a really physical side. Very good in direct play, really good at attacking second balls. When they have to dominate the game through the ball or they have space they are a really dangerous team. Set-pieces and individual qualities that they have. The front players can create in any moment to cause you problems. They are really well coached.

How’s the mood around the camp?

Really good. Winning lifts the energy and the confidence up. They were two big wins as well for us. Now it’s about consistency. Getting that momentum. Take it even further against a really good opponent tomorrow and try to replicate the performance to win the game.

Does it feel like momentum is building?

I think so. Again this is every three days. It doesn’t matter what you did yesterday. It’s about the next day, the next performance. High level performances throughout the game as well because the opponents are so good. That’s what we’ll try to do tomorrow.

How has Odegaard got up to speed so quickly after his injury?

The way he prepared himself. How much good work he put with all the physios and medical department to face the period of importance of the season that we are in to hit the ground running. I think he was exceptional since the Chelsea game and he’s been very consistent the last three games.

Having him back must make your life easier?

Yes. Good players that are so consistent and so reliable and can take the game to the opposition make other players around him better. That’s a big quality of Martin. He’s been missed.

100 appearances for Saliba, what have you made of his performances?

Well at his age, the consistency, the quality of the performances is incredible. It’s not easy, it’s a really tricky position to play in this league. I think he has created a magnificent partnership and big credit to big Gabi as well for that, because I think he is really important for him to play at the level he has done and, yeah, he’s a great player to have, obviously.

Good to have Timber fit with Ben White out?

Yes, for sure, and at that level as well, and we know what he can produce. Again, he is a player with exceptional qualities, a lot of leadership. You see the courage, and with the intention and the purpose he plays with - and that’s very contagious. So it’s a player that still has many other layers and levels to go. We are very happy to have him.

Sterling reaction to not coming on vs Sporting?

A smile on his face, fortunately for me. It’s one of these things that happens in football. Unfortunately it happened to him and he reacted in the best possible way, which is understanding. He has been in this game a long time and he knows that this is something I cannot control.

How do you feel his move has gone so far? Maybe not played as much as fans thought?

I would like to see him more, to be fair. This is down to me. He is trying his best, his application, his commitment around the team has been exceptional and now it is time for me to give him more minutes.

This run now, when it’s busy, we might see him more?

That’s the intention. That’s why I put him in against Forest, that’s why I wanted to put him in again Sporting and [it is about] now getting him in that rhythm, because he can really impact the team as well.

City lost 3-0 lead in midweek, not won in six, what have you made of that?

What I have made of it is what they have done for nine years. I think that is what people have to talk about, how difficult it is what they have done for nine years consistently. And yeah, a bump, everybody has a bump. For them, it is very strange because in nine years they never had it. But that tells you as well the level and the environment that we are in, that everything has to go almost perfect. Performance has to be perfect, availability of your squad has to be perfect, things have to go your way and the opposition, the level is different, and it’s so hard to win.

Feel run they are on giving everyone a sense of opportunity?

I don’t know, I think everybody is just dealing with his own business, that we have enough [of]. It’s so hard and what the rest are doing it’s not really a matter now.

Extra motivation to beat West Ham this weekend given it’s Liverpool vs City?

Well it’s a motivation to win our game because that would put us watching that game on Sunday in a much better position. So, that’s the task.

How do you decompress after games?

I don’t know, I think winning always helps to decompress and decompress in the right way! Sometimes it takes a few hours depending on the performance, the feeling you have after the game, it takes a few days. It’s normal, it’s a lot of emotion, we are so passionate and loving about what we do. We care a lot about what we do and we want to do it our best, and that’s where the emotion plays a big part of that.

Sleep well after games like that in midweek?

We got [back] quite late. Not a lot of hours [sleep], but quite deep, I think.

Bit of concern about Pep after Feyenoord and his well-being. Want to reach out to him? Are you concerned about him?

That is something very personal, but I feel a lot of sympathy for all my colleagues because I know the job, I know how ruthless this industry is. I know how we get judged just by one thing, which is results, regardless that you have done exactly the same thing and the outcome becomes different. We have to deal with that, I know how difficult it is because personally I have been through that a lot and every defeat is obviously super painful. And that’s it. Then just put some perspective into it like we always do and move on, because there is always another game.

Investigation into why suffered so many injuries?

Well that was a big difference between the end of last and the previous one, [with the] availability, and you can tell that. We do research, not only when we have injuries but when we don’t, because people tend to look very deep at things when there is a problem. What about when it is in going very good?

Dig in there because maybe you are doing things that are actually impacting what is actually happening. We have done a lot. I think, not changing much, it is true that certain players they come from a position where they have played over 130 games in two seasons. But a lot of things have been impact and they have been joints, which is not related to muscle injuries and things you can tweak more and it’s more difficult to control, I think.

Partey contract talks?

We will have the right time to discuss about the situation. He is showing consistency at the highest level, again because his availability and the way that he feels physically is allowing him to do that, and I am very pleased with that.