Arsenal news: Enzo Maresca sends Man City title race dig as manager opens up on feud

· Mirror

Arsenal face Brighton on Saturday afternoon in the final Premier League match ahead of the international break

Arsenal will hope to continue their 100% Premier League record with a trip to Brighton on Saturday. The Gunners face the Seagulls in their final league fixture before the international break begins.

Mikel Arteta has overseen six wins out of six in all competitions, including a 2-0 triumph against Napoli in the Champions League. Arsenal also progressed in the Carabao Cup with a 4-2 win over Ipswich Town.

Speaking ahead of the trip to Brighton, Arteta opened up on his side's unbeaten run. He said: "We're going to have to really earn the right to win the game, but certainly that will be the mindset of the players and the team."

Here, Mirror Football has the latest coming out of the Emirates Stadium.

Man City title dig

Enzo Maresca has aimed a dig Arsenal's way as he claimed Sunderland "didn't deserve to lose" against them last weekend. The City boss has coached his side to four wins in the Premier League - the same as the Gunners - and they are behind their title rivals on goal difference alone.

However, the Italian believes his side should be sitting top of the table as the Black Cats were so strong against Arsenal in their 2-0 loss. Discussing City's match against Sunderland on Sunday, Maresca explained: "I watched the game live against Arsenal, then again the last two days. If you watch, you can realise how strong they are.

> "I think personally that they didn’t deserve to lose that game."

Arteta hailed his side's "luck" during that game and praised Sunderland's performance throughout. He said: "There is an element of luck as well because Sunderland are so good at doing that, they throw in numbers, their timing is so good.

> "But if you give them the space to play as well, they play - they are a really, really good side, and in any other moment we could've conceded. That's part of the game as well."

Manager opens up on feud

Fabian Hurzeler has revisited his feud with Arteta ahead of the Gunners' visit to Brighton this weekend. The Seagulls boss has stood by his comments regarding Arsenal's tactics and alleged time wasting that he watched last season, as he previously stated that there was "only one team who tried to play football" in their 1-0 loss last campaign.

At the time, Hurzeler said: "If they win the Premier League, no one will ask how they win the Premier League. You can really feel that they do everything now to win and, in the end, it’s about the rules. So if the Premier League, if the referee, allows everything, then it’s difficult. Then, they make their own rules.

> "At the moment, I have the feeling they are doing their own rules, no matter how they are playing. I will never be that kind of manager who tries to win in that way. Of course, every team will manage and waste time but there has to be a limit and the limit has to be set by the Premier League. The limit has to be set by the referees. At the moment, they just do what they want."

Now, Hurzeler has stood by his feelings but admitted that the Gunners were "deserved champions" overall. He said: "Last season was last season. Opinions are important and I will always share my opinion if I am asked.

> "But I congratulated Arsenal for being deserved champions. It's a new season. They started very impressively. It is our challenge to compete with them."

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