Mikel Arteta sets Arsenal points target for Premier League title challenge ahead of Sheffield United test

Arsenal will likely need to rack up 90 points in the Premier League if they're to lift the title this season, according to manager Mikel Arteta.

The Gunners are looking to end their 20-year wait to win the league, having bounced back from last term's disappointing finish, with Manchester City ultimately pipping them by five points en route to the Treble.

This time around, Arsenal are embroiled in a three-way battle, trailing both Liverpool and City. If they defeat Sheffield United at Bramall Lane on Monday evening, they'll be two points off the top.

After a difficult end to 2023, Arteta's troops have begun the new calendar year in destructive fashion, firing in goals for fun. Indeed, their six straight league victories in 2024 have seen 25 goals scored.

Such is the standard of their rivals, though, the Spanish coach knows Arsenal have an incredibly tough task ahead, suggesting his team may even need a flawless run from now until May.

Speaking ahead of his side's test against The Blades, Arteta said: "The demands, you might have to win every game. There are a lot of games and we are all going to have crazy schedules and this league might be different to last season. Anything under 90 points I think would be very difficult."

The 90-point mark has only been hit once by the North London giants previously, during the iconic 'Invincibles' campaign of 2003/04. Last season's haul of 84 is the closest they've come since.

To smash the barrier this time around, it would mean 10 wins and two draws from their final 12 games, or 11 wins, giving the Gunners very little room for error.

Conversely, Liverpool under Jurgen Klopp and City under Pep Guardiola are both seasoned when it comes to piling up massive points tallies.

The top four totals in Premier League history - and six of the top eight - have been shared by that pair. Incredibly, within the last five years, Liverpool took 92 points and 97 points in campaigns that only finished with runners-up medals.

This weekend, those two behemoths showed their mettle in trying circumstances, with Liverpool scoring a 99th-minute winner at Nottingham Forest and City coming from behind at half-time to down bitter foes Manchester United.

Arsenal's aim of a perfect finish will see their biggest tests come away to City and local rivals Tottenham Hotspur, while they also still need to face a buoyant Aston Villa at home.

However, Arteta is wary of more pressing matters at Sheffield United: "They’re a really difficult team to beat. I’ve watched four or five games now with the City game, the way they started against Villa, and then obviously the game took a different route, but they are extremely well coached.

"I know Chris really well and I admire his teams, a lot of things that he does with them. It will be a tough night."

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