Every word from Mikel Arteta's pre-Forest presser

Before making the trip up to Nottingham for our Premier League encounter with high-flying Forest, Mikel Arteta was at the Sobha Realty Training Centre to tackle questions from the media.

He was asked about the latest team news, his reflections on the weekend's defeat to West Ham United and where it leaves the title race, and his thoughts on Forest's incredible campaign so far.

Here is everything he had to say:

on the fitness of Gabriel Martinelli, Bukayo Saka and Ethan Nwaneri:
Ethan was just cramping, obviously his load has been very different in recent weeks, but he’s fine. Bukayo and Gabi are progressing really well but are still a bit far from coming back.

on last weekend’s impact on the title race:
It was a very disappointing weekend. In the previous 15 games we had won 10 and drawn five, exactly the same as Liverpool, with exactly the same goal difference, which is +23. So we’ve been extremely consistent over the past three and a half months, considering everything we have been through. We have generated that momentum, and it was that weekend where we had to do what we had to do again. Nothing different to the previous 15, and we got the defeat and on top of that, [Liverpool] win.

When you are trying to build that momentum, and we put so much into it, especially with the circumstances that we have, it was a very hard one to take. The reality is there are so many games to play, and you have to get back to it. You have to have the levels and the consistency and the hunger to go again, and that’s what we are going to do on Wednesday.

on Liverpool’s impressive form:
You cannot control that. In the end, you are going to have to set an amount of numbers to win in this league, and we’re going to have to hit that number if we are going to have any chance of doing that. But we are certainly going to continue to try.

on if he enjoys trying to solve the problems we have:
It’s been incredibly satisfying to work every day with the players, the coaches and the staff to try to overcome certain situations. If somebody tells you at the start of the season that by this time you will have played five times with a red card, over half an hour in each of them, and you have lost this amount of players, what’s the bet you are in the middle of the table at least, and you are out of the Champions League?

But that’s not the situation, so that tells you the resilience, the resources and the ambition the team and that every individual has, and that time has probably been one of my proudest moments to work, in that sense. The problem is when you are there you want more and more. I’m not going to stop - over my dead body that we stop thinking that way and putting everything we possibly can to increase that probability of us winning, being better than the opponent and hitting that performance, those standards constantly, regardless of what happens.

on if Mikel Merino can still play in a false nine position:
Yes - in relation to the opposition and the options we have, and then what the team generates as well. Attacking players depend a lot on what the team is generating, the chemistry, the fluidity, the areas we are hitting, and how we interact with each other. It worked really against Leicester, but the other day there were a lot of things missing.

on how to get more goals from midfield:
We have fixed it because our goal difference with the best team in the league is both +23 in 15 games, so that’s quite unique to do. But we want more goals from all of them and we know that there are areas we can increase and this is one.

on if the game against West Ham was one of his most frustrating days:
I don’t know. It’s not a frustration, I think it was a feeling of knowing how much we are putting into it to be where we are, so when you have the chance to say: “OK, let’s go another step,” and then on Wednesday will have to be another one especially with the form that Liverpool are in. It was tough, it was a tough one to take, especially at home where we’ve been so consistent.

on Nuno Espirito Santo’s achievements at Forest:
Unbelievable, what they’re doing and what he’s done. Not only there, but what he did at Wolves as well, it was incredible, to be fair. So huge pride for him, the coaching staff and the players and the club as well for what they have generated after coming into the Premier League, it’s a remarkable story, so well done to them.

on Forest having such a high rise in recent years:
It’s very difficult, that’s why it’s a very special story.

on whether he thinks we can still win the Premier League title: 
If not, I will go home. Mathematically it’s possible. You are there, you have to play every game. Suddenly three days ago we could close the gap and you are one and a half games away, it doesn’t matter, we have to continue to go.

on whether he’s clutching at straws:
No, it’s the difficulty. It’s higher than it was three days ago, but if you want to win the Premier League, you will have to do something special. If you’re going to win the Premier League with the circumstances we have, you’re probably going to have to do something nobody else has done in the history of the Premier League.

on if there’s a problem with discipline:
It’s a big problem, not about discipline. A lot of factors have contributed to that.

on what we missed without Ben White playing this season:
He’s a player that has given us something very, very special, especially in that right unit. We haven’t played with that right unit at all this season with him, Bukayo and Martin as well - a unit that has played so much football together. It’s great to have him back, it’s more options and his energy, the way he is around the team and what he generates, he’s certainly been missed.

on if England have missed him:
That’s for Thomas [Tuchel] to decide, not for me.

on why we were so far from our standards on Saturday:
Because we didn’t put West Ham on the ropes like we had to, especially with the amount of time and space that we had in certain areas. We weren’t good enough, especially with the ball and the way we defended the box in two situations that could’ve cost us the game. One of them did cost us the game. It’s very clear, we have to set very different standards and we didn’t. Were they better than us, watching it back twice, did they deserve to win the game? I really have doubts about that, but we look at ourselves and we could’ve done much, much better. That’s for sure.

on if he has to transmit his belief to the players that we can still win the title:
They know and especially because we’ve been in the other position as well very recently and we know how quickly things can change. You have to be there and we deserve to continue in that fight.

on why we’ve struggled to beat the likes of West Ham, Villa, Newcastle and Fulham:
They’re all very different in relation to the opponent and the performances that we have had, some of them we certainly deserved to win if we had been accurate enough in the boxes this season against this kind of opposition with the amount of situations that we generated. Others, for example Newcastle away, we didn’t deserve to win the game.

on if we’ve looked at changing formation:
Yes, but 4-3-3, really I don’t know when we played 4-3-3 in phases of play in the game because we change our second relation to our high press, when we are deep, on first, second and final third shape, but in the end players give you options with their qualities and connections and we’re certainly going to use the quality of Ben.

on the progress of appointing a sporting director:
That’s a question for the club, they are in a position to give better answers in terms of timing and selection than I am.

on whether we’ll have a new sporting director before the summer:
Our plan is to nail the process that we believe is the best to try to find the person that is the best one for the moment that Arsenal is in right now. That’s what the club is trying to do.

on if Martin Odegaard’s injury has had an impact on his season:
We don’t know. The answer will probably be no because he came back in such a strong way and performed at a very high level. Then there’s sustaining that over a period of time, which is what we demand from the players constantly, especially the creative players. It’s very difficult. His attitude and how willing he was the other day with 10 men, how he takes responsibility and how he wants to drive the team, it’s remarkable and that’s what I demand from the players - that will to continue to make things happen. Martin certainly is trying more than anybody else.

on if Martin’s role has changed:
No, his numbers are very similar in terms of what we expect, such as expected goals are areas that he’s hitting. Maybe his efficiency has dropped a little bit, there were some penalties in there that he’s scored in the past which is another factor. We want to increase the scoring level records of every individual and Martin is one of them.