Henrikh Mkhitaryan has said that Arsenal’s players are paying little attention to the Premier League table at this stage of the season, despite reentering the top four with a 2-0 win over Southampton on Sunday.
First-half goals from Alexandre Lacazette and Mkhitaryan put Arsenal back on track to qualify for next season’s Champions League, with Manchester United dropping points in their goalless draw with Premier League leaders Liverpool.
Arsenal entertain Bournemouth on Wednesday evening, before a north London grudge match against bitter rivals Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday, which will likely prove pivotal in the race for a precious top four place.
However, Mkhitaryan — who scored his first goal for Arsenal in Sunday’s win since a 3-2 defeat at St Mary’s in December — has said that nobody at the club is yet getting carried away by returning to fourth, when there are so many crucial league matches on the horizon.
“We are not looking at the table at the moment because we still have lots of games to play,” Mkhitaryan said.
“The most important is to be focused and to be ready for every game because we are not going to think that we are in the top four and nothing will change. We just have to keep working and trying to our best to win three points in every game.
“It is not the main thing at the moment. The season is not done we still have lots of games to play. The most important thing is to stay focused and keep winning games.”
Mkhitaryan enjoyed one of his best performances of the season lining up on the right of the three attacking midfielders deployed behind Lacazette, although insisted that he feels confident no matter where he is played by Unai Emery.
“It doesn't matter where I play,” he said. “The most important is to be in the starting line-up and to help the team win games, that is the most important thing. I don't care if I play from the left, the right or the middle – the most important is to do something good for the team.”
Asked if he felt under pressure to perform to keep his place in Emery’s starting XI, Mkhitaryan replied: “Everyone knows what they have to do. There is nothing to be under pressure because we know exactly what we have to do.
“We know how to play the ball and understand each other to have a good connection between the players to score goals.”
