Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta is confident his side will return to winning ways against Southampton after back to back draws against Liverpool and West Ham United in the Premier League.

In both games, the Gunners let two-goal leads slip away. They are now only four points ahead of Manchester City, who has a game in hand and is the defending champion.

Next week, two teams that want to win the title will play at the Etihad Stadium in a game that could be very important.

Arteta said that his team had responded well to their losses as he prepares them to play Southampton on Friday, which is the team at the bottom of the league.

“I’m very confident,” he said on Thursday. “Twists and turns are part of anything you do, especially in football.

“Whatever the aim or the target is, it is not going to go in a linear progression. You have to know that and prepare for that and the way the team reacted this week is incredibly positive and we want to see that tomorrow night.”

The Spaniard said that his team had to be more cruel if they wanted to win the English Premier League for the first time in 19 years.

“Maybe we got too comfortable at some stage in the (West Ham) game,” he said. “It’s different. They know. I don’t have to coach them because they said it straight away.

“They know, it’s in their system, it’s in the gut and tomorrow we have to show it.”

Last week at the London Stadium, Bukayo Saka missed a penalty that would have given the visitors a 3-1 lead. It was his first miss from the spot since his shot in the Euro 2020 final shootout was saved.

But Arteta said that the 21-year-old English forward would still take penalties for the club and could learn something from the situation.

“He loves the responsibility but as well he puts a lot on his shoulders,” said the Arsenal boss.

“If he had any doubt about how much people loved or respected him or admired him at the club, he had a very overwhelming reaction from everybody in the building and at the club.

“I think at the end of this, it can be something very positive that can give him a big lift because everyone reacted in an unbelievable way towards him because he deserves it because of the way he is.”

Arteta asked the crowd at the Emirates to make the match on Friday “electric.”

“I want that crowd playing every single ball with our team and be no different to what we have experienced — at full capacity energy-wise and everyone very positive pushing the team.”

Photo by EPA/ANTONIO COTRIM