Oleksandr Zinchenko believes Arsenal have rediscovered their “energy” for the title race and are ready to take it to the wire.
Arsenal stumbled at just the wrong time after going four games without a win to hand the initiative to Manchester City. But Zinchenko says their win over Chelsea has restored their confidence for the run-in and the whole squad still believes they can win the title.
Arsenal defender Zinchenko said: “If you don’t believe, there is no point playing. So of course I do. When I had just arrived I said the quality everyone has here is incredible, the energy as well. So I said everything is possible in this life if we’re going to work so hard. And that’s what we’re trying to do.
“We worked so hard this season and we were doing so well, we were top of the league for a while, and then suddenly, in this league, anything can happen. We dropped some points. Of course everyone is frustrated, until the Chelsea game. Now we have got three points, I hope the energy is back and let’s see what is going to happen in the next games, because we have some tough games to play.
"We have a few games to play and everything is possible in this league. You never know. We need to keep fighting, because we worked so hard during this season. The Chelsea win is so important for us to be back in a routine, for the mood in the dressing room and in terms also for our league position. So, let’s keep going.
“Our fans deserve everything. The way how they push us, that’s like an extra motivation for us to keep going, to keep fighting, and to give everything on the pitch.”
Arsenal face a daunting trip to Newcastle on Sunday when they face Eddie Howe’s men who are in red-hot form and are set for a top four finish. It was at St James’s Park last season where Arsenal suffered a defeat in the penultimate game of the campaign which ultimately cost them a place in the top four.
They might have to go there with major defensive worries as William Saliba is out injured while boss Mikel Arteta admitted he is concerned about centre half Gabriel after he hobbled off against Chelsea. Zinchenko added: “We have to be focused on the next game because we have Newcastle away, who are having an amazing season and then from that game we go again. Simple as that.
“We know how strong they are, we know the season they’ve had and what form they’re in. So we have to prepare as best we can, our manager is going to say what we need to do, what we need to improve and then let’s see what’s going to happen.”
