Arteta Wolves draw rallying cry as Arsenal boss demands response ahead of crucial north London derby against Tottenham

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has urged his players to channel the pain of a damaging 2-2 draw with Wolverhampton Wanderers into a forceful response against Tottenham Hotspur this weekend.

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Arteta issued the Arteta Wolves draw rallying cry after Arsenal surrendered a two-goal lead at Molineux on Wednesday night.

Goals from Bukayo Saka and Piero Hincapie had put Arsenal firmly in control before Hugo Bueno and Tom Edozie struck to rescue a point for Wolves, who are bottom of the Premier League table.

The result left Arsenal five points clear of Manchester City, who have a game in hand, as the title race tightens.

The draw followed another stalemate against Brentford and means Arsenal have won only two of their last seven league matches.

Manchester City have twice overhauled Arsenal to win the title in the 2022 to 2023 and 2023 to 2024 seasons.

A crucial April meeting between the two sides could again prove decisive.

Arteta insisted his players’ commitment was not in question.

“I’m going to be the first one to be close with them because it has nothing to do with attitude or desire. It is completely the opposite,” Arteta said.

“It’s part of football. Where it could have gone wrong today, it went wrong.”

The Spaniard described the manner of the goals conceded as rare but stressed the need for an immediate reaction.

“If you are at the top you have to win and win. That’s nothing new,” Arteta added.

Arsenal travel to face Tottenham Hotspur in a high-stakes north London derby on Sunday.

Arteta said the squad must confront the setback honestly before that encounter.

“We need to go through the pain, look in the mirror and understand what the game requires now. The next action is Sunday,” Arteta said.

Bukayo Saka echoed his manager’s disappointment, describing the mood in the dressing room as flat.

“It’s pretty disappointing. In the first half we started so well but in the second half we dropped the level and got punished,” Saka told the club’s official website.

The winger maintained that the title race remains in Arsenal’s control if standards improve.

“It was already a big game and now it’s still a big game. It’s still in our control, so we just need to fix the issues and get back to winning ways,” Saka said.

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The Arteta Wolves draw rallying cry now sets the tone for a defining week in Arsenal’s pursuit of a first league title in 22 years.