Manchester City defender Nathan Ake has insisted that Arsenal can still be caught in the title race as "all of their remaining games are difficult".
The Gunners headed into the international break eight points clear of the reigning champions at the summit of the Premier League, although City have played one game less than Mikel Arteta's side. Arsenal also have to travel to the Etihad Stadium next month for a seismic showdown which is likely to have major implications on who comes out on top in the title race. Pep Guardiola's side won the reverse fixture 3-1 back in February.
Manchester City are aiming to win their fifth title in six years, and Ake is adamant that his side have what it takes to pip Arsenal to the post - even if the race goes right down to the wire.
The Dutch defender, who scored twice in the Netherlands' 3-0 win Gibraltar on Monday night, told SportBible : "I think it's going to go right to the end. It's very tight. Everything can change. We still have to play them at home, so that's going to be a massive, massive game. We know, from now on, that every game is going to be vital. If you lose one point, if you lose two points.
“It's so difficult to come back from it. The only thing we can do is win our games. We have a tough test coming up against Liverpool [on Saturday], which is the first one after the international break. That is going to be tough. But we need to win them all.”
He added: “I think all of Arsenal's remaining games are difficult to be fair. In some of our previous games, we dropped points to teams that people didn't expect us to drop points against. But they lost against Everton, too. Every game in the league is so difficult. You can't relax at any second because teams will respond.”
Join the debate! Who do you think will win the Premier League title: Arsenal or Man City? Let us know here.
Although Ake is confident that Manchester City will have the chance to close the gap on Arsenal due to their tough run-in, Arteta is relaxed ahead of the final weeks of the season.
The Spaniard, who spent over three years working alongside Guardiola at the Etihad before returning to Arsenal, has overseen the Gunners unlikely title charge after failing to qualify for the Champions League last season.
But he isn't placing any additional pressure on his players ahead of the run-in and is only focused on what they can achieve, rather than what Manchester City do in their games.
He told Sky Sports : “I think it is going to be what we do every single day, that is going to decide our outcome, we cannot control the outcome of other clubs, what we can control is what we do every single day, how we train, how we communicate, how we behave, how is our energy.”
