Arsenal plot Leeds repeat mission as Mikel Arteta eyes momentum shift in title race

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Evening Standard

·31 January 2026

Arsenal plot Leeds repeat mission as Mikel Arteta eyes momentum shift in title race

Gunners head to Elland Road for what now is a must-win fixture after suffering a dip in the Premier League

Arsenal were too good for Leeds in the reverse fixture at the start of the Premier League season

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Arsenal's 5-0 win over Leeds feels a long, long time ago.

The sun was shining, Viktor Gyokeres feasted on weaker opposition, and the Gunners were having fun.

Gyokeres has had a slight upturn in form, improving on a dismal run heading into and over the festive period, but you would struggle to argue that any of those three factors still feel relevant.

Five months later and Arsenal, as they were at the end of that August afternoon, are top of the Premier League table.

The mood, though is very different. The heat has been turned up, every touch, pass and shot carrying more weight by the week as the title race builds to a crescendo.

A three-match winless run has turned the dial up further on Arsenal, reducing their lead at the top to only four points and intensifying questions over the side's mentality.

Arteta attempted to draw a line in the sand in a team meeting on Monday. The message to his players was that this was supposed to be enjoyable, that they had earned the right to relish a position they had worked so hard to get themselves into.

Arsenal saw their unbeaten home record this season snapped by Manchester United

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Releasing the handbrake, a mental reset, a clever flip in psychology. Whatever you want to call it, Arteta accepted on Friday that only a positive result against at Elland Road against Leeds this weekend can truly flip the momentum as Arsenal need.

"Win tomorrow," Arteta said.

"Win tomorrow and perform so well, c'est fini and we move on to the semi-final [against Chelsea in the Carabao Cup]. That's the best way."

The stakes are huge for the Gunners in what, even though is it only still January, feels like close to a must-win match for them. Come the summer it could be looked back on as a crossroads moment.

The stage of the season when a blip turned into something far more serious, or a match when Arsenal proved their mental strength by getting things back on track and not looking back.

For all Elland Road can serve up a raucous atmosphere, it does not feel like too bad a thing for Arsenal that they are on the road this weekend.

The defeat to Manchester United in north London a week ago played out in front of an Arsenal crowd riddled with anxiety and fear, entirely understandable emotions considering what is there to be won by their side.

They are particularly understandable in the current context, too, with Arsenal continuing to struggle from open play and gifting away sloppy goals at the back.

The groans, though, and the tension in the air cannot be helpful for the players. Playing away from home, where Arsenal can take the sting out of the match and control it at their own pace without the demands of an expectant set of supporters, might be beneficial.

Flashback: Arsenal, and Viktor Gyokeres, have fond memories of playing Leeds

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Arsenal's injury situation has eased significantly, to the extent that only Max Dowman is currently unavailable.

That puts more pressure on Arteta and his decisions. He has a stacked squad at his disposal, options in every position and reinforcements off the bench, and he must get the most out of it.

Jurrien Timber or Ben White? Martin Odegaard or Eberechi Eze? Gabriel Martinelli or Leandro Trossard? Kai Havertz or Viktor Gyokeres? These are the kind of choices most Premier League managers dream of.

Whatever happens over the next four months, Arteta wants his players and the supporters to enjoy the ride.

Doing so against Leeds in August was easy. More of the same this afternoon will be far less so, but it is more needed than ever.