'He has us on tight leash': Ramsdale explains how Arteta makes Arsenal players fear

Asked about how he and his teammates are dealing with the pressure of an unexpected title challenge, Aaron Ramsdale told Sky Sports:

“I think that’s where the manager (Mikel Arteta) and the coaching staff come in. He has us on a tight leash. He allows us to express ourselves and be ourselves, be our own characters and then all he has to do is give it a quick pull and we’re back in order and back in line.

“It’s very easy get ahead of yourself when you’re doing so well and have a team of such young players. When you have the boss as our manager instilling the fear factor in the team, it’s very hard to step out of line.

“When you do, he gives you a quiet word, it’s not the end of the world, making mistakes is part of footballing life but he does it in a way with all different individuals, different ways of doing it and you’ll be back in line sharpish.”

He added: “Everyone finds it [the title race] surreal – the players in the dressing room. I think that’s why the pressure isn’t building too much. Especially last year, the pain of missing out on the top four allowed us to take everything slowly and with a pinch of salt almost.

“People are coming in early with a smile on their, they are looking forward to going out to training, looking forward to spending time with your mates and teammates.”

Arsenal could extend their lead over Man City to eight points with victory over Crystal Palace.