Mikel Arteta said Liverpool's eight-point lead at the top of the Premier League will be "extremely difficult" to maintain ahead of their meeting with Manchester City on Sunday. 

Liverpool have impressed under new head coach Arne Slot, winning 17 of their first 19 games under the Dutchman in all competitions this season (D1 L1). 

Slot's side welcome Pep Guardiola's out-of-form City to Anfield this weekend, knowing a victory would put them 11 points clear of the reigning top-flight champions. 

Arsenal find themselves in fifth ahead of their meeting with West Ham in Saturday's late kick-off and nine points behind Liverpool after 12 games. 

But the Gunners have found themselves in a similar position to Liverpool, holding an eight-point lead of their own over City last season before losing the title despite spending 248 days of the 2023-24 campaign at the summit. 

"We've been there and to sustain it for 10 months is extremely difficult," said Arteta. "Suddenly, when you think you have it, one day it collapses.

"It can be a result, through injuries or other kinds of decisions. And it can happen in any moment. We have to be ready for that.

"But it's something we can't control. What we can control is be at our very best."

Asked if Arsenal are capable of catching Liverpool this season, Arteta replied: "I really believe in my team, yes."

Ahead of this weekend's blockbuster fixture between Liverpool and City, the Reds will be buoyed by their impressive Champions League win over Real Madrid in midweek. 

Slot's side remain the only side in the competition with a 100% record, while also topping the pile in the Premier League with 10 wins from their first 12 fixtures. 

Liverpool’s only top-flight defeat so far this season was a 1-0 loss to Nottingham Forest at Anfield.

They’ve won seven of their eight league games since then (D1), with that draw coming against Arsenal at the Emirates, scoring at least twice in seven of those games.

And Arteta believes that his team will need to be perfect if the Reds keep up their current form, starting against London rivals West Ham. 

"If they continue then that's for sure, with the numbers they're producing and the amount of games they're winning," added Arteta.

"The focus is on us to maintain the consistency especially and performances that will give us the right to win games, keep the availability in the squad. This is a long run.

"Winning lifts the energy and our confidence up. We've had two big wins for us and now it's about consistency and getting that momentum, taking it further against a good opponent [West Ham] and try to replicate the performance to win the game."

Arteta also suggested that Guardiola's side are not out of the race just yet, despite failing to win in their last six games in all competitions (D1 L5). 

And Anfield has been a difficult ground for the Citizens in recent years. They have won just one of their last 21 Premier League away games against Liverpool (D7 L13), beating them 4-1 in February 2021. They’ve not won on Merseyside with fans in attendance since May 2003 (2-1).

But City have been hampered by several injuries to key first-team players this term, with  Mateo Kovacic, Jeremy Doku, John Stones, Oscar Bobb, Kevin De Bruyne and Jack Grealish all facing recent fitness issues.

"Even with those injuries, they deserved to win every game," said Arteta. "If you look at their stats and everything they do, they have always been better than the opposition.

"This is football. You deserve and you don't win it, but there's a reason for that."