Arsenal news LIVE: Gunners analyst SLAPPED in Villa bust up EXCLUSIVE, Jorginho on half-time talk, Saka pays homage

Morning, Arsenal fans

Ivan Fresneda and Denzel Dumfries could be summer targets - with Kieran Tierney heading out.

That's the latest transfer gossip as the table-topping Gunners try to shake off injuries ahead of Saturday's Prem trip to Leicester.

Six key players were NOT spotted in training yesterday.

Apart from expected absentees Thomas Partey and Gabriel Jesus, four of them played in Saturday's 4-2 win at Aston Villa - Eddie Nketiah, Jorginho, Oleksandr Zinchenko and Bukayo Saka.

But although Saka was limping during that comeback victory, Arsenal chief Mikel Arteta has already confirmed the England winger is "fine".

As for ins and outs at the end of the season, Real Valladolid's Fresneda is likely to again interest the Gunners, Newcastle and Borussia Dortmund.

It's understood Arsenal have kept watching the Spaniard, 18, after missing out in January.

But there are conflicting reports over another right-back.

Some sources say the Gunners are monitoring Inter Milan’s Holland ace Denzel Dumfries.

But transfer guru Fabrizio Romano is unsure if the former Manchester United target is attracting such attention.

Meanwhile, Newcastle are tipped to bid for Arsenal left-back Kieran Tierney, who has been displaced by Oleksandr Zinchenko's storming form.

Finally, Old Trafford legend Gary Neville claims it will be “really difficult” for Arteta's men to win the Prem unless they solve recent defensive problems.

The Gunners conceded 16 goals from their first 19 league games – but have leaked 12 in their last six matches across all competitions.

Top of the Prem... and the Prime

Last week's crunch Prem clash between Arsenal and Manchester City set a UK viewing record.

Global retail powerhouse Amazon have revealed the top-two clash was the most-watched Premier League game on their Prime Video service.

More than four million tuned in to watch the showdown between this season's Prem frontrunners.

It beat a previous Prime Video high mark set in December 2021 when they broadcast a thriller which saw Manchester United win 3-2 against the Gunners.

Aaron: Much we need to do better

Arsenal keeper Aaron Ramsdale says they have room for improvement – despite topping the table after their 4-2 win at Aston Villa.

Ahead of this weekend’s trip to Leicester, the England keeper said: “We are obviously delighted we’ve got the points and four goals – but there are lots of things to improve on.

“It was a classic for us for the wrong reasons.

“Take out the first 45 minutes where we didn’t perform to an Arsenal team or a team that is fighting for a league title.”

'Protect Saka like Messi, Ronaldo, Neymar'

Oleksandr Zinchenko says refs should protect "unbelievable" Bukayo Saka like Lionel Messi.

England winger Saka netted in Arsenal's 4-2 comeback win at Aston Villa

And left-back Zinchenko said: “Bukayo is an unbelievable player, all the full-backs from the other teams they know he’s so dangerous, so they try to provoke him, tackle him and the referees should know this.

 “We can speak about [Lionel] Messi, Cristiano [Ronaldo], Neymar and players like this. The referees need to protect this kind of player."

But Zinchenko added: “Apart from Bukayo, we have other forward players who are so dangerous and the referees need to be careful, they need to look after them of course.”

Summer fight over Fresneda

January target Ivan Fresneda is expected to again interest Arsenal, Newcastle and Borussia Dortmund this summer.

Transfer guru Fabrizio Romano claims the Gunners have kept watching the Real Valladolid right-back, 18.

Arsenal have also been linked with Inter Milan's Holland full-back Denzel Dumfries.

But Romanp wrote in his Caughtoffisde: column: “Despite reports to the contrary, at the moment I’m not aware of any negotiation between Arsenal and Inter for Dumfries.

“They are exploring right back options and Ivan Fresneda remains appreciated, they are sending scouts regularly to follow him, but Dumfries has completely different value for Inter and at the moment his situation is still quiet.”

Gunners in driving seat for title - Owen

Manchester United are title contenders but Arsenal are "in the "driving seat".

That's the verdict of Liverpool and England strike legend Michael Owen.

Yesterday's 3-0 win over Leicester put United three points off neighbours City and five behind leaders Arsenal, who have a game in hand on both clubs.

Owen told Premier League Productions: “It’s amazing isn’t it? You see Man City sat there on 52 points and it’s a really good total, but you just don’t feel like they’re absolutely purring and at the top of their game this season so far.

“And Arsenal, even though they’ve had a couple of iffy results in recent times, they’re probably sat there confident now. They’ve gained another couple of points on Manchester City.

“However, cast your minds back a month or so and Manchester City would probably snap your hand off only being two points behind now, because that gap was quite big.

“Everyone knows there are going to be so many ups and downs and twists – and nobody is mentioning Manchester United.

“But you’d have to say that Arsenal are in the driving seat.”

Ged on with it

One-time Arsenal wonderkid Gedion Zelalem has joined Dutch outfit Den Bosch from New York City FC.

The German midfielder, 26, was part of the Gunners first-team squad ten years ago but has had seven clubs since then.

Toon linked to Tierney

Newcastle are tipped to bid for Arsenal left-back Kieran Tierney this summer.

Football Insider say the Magpies are monitoring the Scotland star's situation as he continues to play second fiddle for the table-topping Gunners to Oleksandr Zinchenko.

It's suggested Tierney, 25, would cost around £30million - £5m more than they paid Celtic for him in 2019.

Toon linked to Tierney

Newcastle are tipped to bid for Arsenal left-back Kieran Tierney this summer.

Football Insider say the Magpies are monitoring the Scotland star's situation as he continues to play second fiddle for the table-topping Gunners to Oleksandr Zinchenko.

It's suggested Tierney, 25, would cost around £30million - £5m more than they paid Celtic for him in 2019.

Ederson names 2 ways Jesus surpasses Haaland

Man City keeper Ederson rates Arsenal striker Gabriel Jesus as BETTER than Etihad goal machine Erling Haaland in two ways.

Ex-City star Jesus is weeks away from returning for the Prem leaders after surgery - while Haaland has hit 26 league goals for Pep Guardiola's second-placed side.

City keeper and Jesus' Brazil team-mate Ederson told UEFA: "When [Haaland] arrived, we said he was going to score a lot – and that's been happening

"He is a brilliant goalscorer, he always looks to score and help the team.

"He is the striker we needed because in comparison to Gabriel (Jesus), they are different players: Gabi likes to come in from out wide, he is stronger and more versatile; Haaland plays more centrally, looking to get into the box, he is a target in the area.

"That has been the major difference. When you get into the final third you have someone who will always be in the area."

Gunner lift the crown, says supercomputer

Arsenal will be Prem champs this season after their dramatic win over Aston Villa on the weekend, according to a predicting supercomputer.

Number-crunchers at bettingexpert and their prediction model BETSiE believe the Gunners will pip Manchester City to the crown.

At the opposite end of the table they have Leeds to narrowly survive, with Everton, Southampton and Bournemouth going down.

'Six stars not spotted at training'

Six big names were reportedly out of the picture when Arsenal trained at London Colney this afternoon.

Injured stars Thomas Partey and Gabriel Jesus appeared, not surprisingly, to be missing.

But in a video by Football Daily, Eddie Nketiah, Jorginho, Oleksandr Zinchenko and Bukayo Saka also seemed to be absent - having all played in Saturday's incredible 4-2 win at Aston Villa.

Gunners' boss Mikel Arteta has clarified that Saka is now "fine" after he carried on playing with a limp at the weekend.

Title 'very difficult' unless Gunners tighten up

Gary Neville claims it will be "really difficult" for Arsenal to win the Prem unless they solve their recent defensive problems.

The Gunners conceded 16 goals from their first 19 league games - but have leaked 12 in their last six games across all competitions.

Nonetheless, Saturday's 4-2 comeback win at Aston Villa put Arsenal back on top, two points clear of Manchester City and five above United.

Red Devils' legend Neville told Sky Sports: "It was a really good and important victory. There’s such a long way to go in the title race, it will twist back and forth.

‘"We’ve got an intriguing title race but Arsenal needed a good weekend after that Man City defeat.

"One thing I would say though is that Arsenal have conceded 12 goals in the last six games.

"One of the traits of a run-in is if you’re conceding goals and teams think they have a chance of scoring, it’s very difficult to win a league, it really is.

"They just need to watch that. This weekend will give them confidence and if they can get back to some clean sheets that will be really important."

'New TV channel for Prem games'

Prem games will reportedly be shown on a new TV channel from next season.

It comes after a merger between BT Sport and Eurosport last year, with the former set to change its name.

An announcement of a number of new channels is expected on Tuesday, according to the Daily Mail.

And for the first time in ten years, Premier League games will be shown on a new TV channel.

Champions League matches are also set to be shown on the new channels.

The new channels will broadcast all of BT Sport and Eurosport's live sports rights, which also include the Champions League, Europa League, UFC, boxing and the Olympics, as well as the Prem.

Warner Brothers Discovery, who own Eurosport, acquired BT Sport last May in a deal reportedly worth £633million.

The overhaul at BT Sport will see them move to WBD's studios in Chiswick and Stockley Park from their current Stratford HQ in East London.

Bukayo gets all-clear

Arsenal fans can breathe a sigh of relief this morning with news their talismanic winger Bukayo Saka is okay after his injury scare against Aston Villa.

The England star went down clutching his ankle in the 4-2 victory at Villa Park and was seen limping but Gunners boss Mikel Arteta has now confirmed he is “fine”.

Ramsdale challenges Arsenal to improve

Arsenal keeper Aaron Ramsdale says they have room for improvement - despite topping the table after their 4-2 win at Aston Villa.

Ahead of this weekend’s trip to Leicester, the England keeper said: "We are obviously delighted we’ve got the points and four goals - but there are lots of things to improve on.

"It was a classic for us for the wrong reasons.

"Take out the first 45 minutes where we didn’t perform to an Arsenal team or a team that is fighting for a league title."

Former Arsenal starlet's Dutch move

One-time Arsenal wonderkid Gedion Zelalem has joined Dutch outfit Den Bosch from New York City FC.

The German midfielder, 26, was part of the Gunners first-team squad ten years ago but has had seven clubs since then.

City legend Yays backs Arsenal

Manchester City legend Yaya Toure says Arsenal have shown they are capable of beating his old club to the Premier League title this season.

The table-topping Gunners lead City by two points and have a game in hand after the weekend's action.

Toure, who won the Prem with City three times, told William Hill: "I want Manchester City to win the league as a fan, but let’s see.

"Arsenal deserve to be where they are now for what they’re doing - they’ve been in fantastic form for several months now.

“I watched the Arsenal vs Manchester City game at the Emirates and thought that Arsenal looked really strong. They were unlucky to lose.

"I definitely think Arsenal can win the title, but it’s far from the end yet, so we’ll have to see what happens in the next few games."

'Title's Arsenal's to lose' - Vieira

Arsenal legend Patrick Vieira says the Prem title is now theirs to lose.

The Gunners are two points clear at the top of the table with a game in hand on rivals.

Crystal Palace boss Vieira told William Hill: "I think Arsenal did really well against Aston Villa on Saturday - to bounce back with that 4-2 win at Villa Park.

"They are just in a really good place at the moment, with a lot of confidence.

"I still believe Manchester City will chase Arsenal until the very last day of the Premier League season but I think it’s Arsenal’s title to lose."

Supercomputer predicts Arsenal title win

Arsenal will be Prem champs this season after their dramatic win over Aston Villa on the weekend, according to a predicting supercomputer.

Number-crunchers at bettingexpert and their prediction model BETSiE believe the Gunners will pip Manchester City to the crown.

At the opposite end of the table they have Leeds to narrowly survive, with Everton, Southampton and Bournemouth going down.

Arsenal v City Prime record

Last week's crunch Prem clash between Arsenal and Manchester City set a UK viewing record.

Global retail powerhouse Amazon have revealed the top-two clash was the most-watched Premier League game on their Prime Video service.

More than four million tuned in to watch the showdown between this season's Prem frontrunners.

It beat a previous Prime Video high mark set in December 2021 when they broadcast a thriller which saw Manchester United win 3-2 against the Gunners.

Martinelli branded "rubbish"

He might have raced away to roll Arsenal's fourth goal into an unguarded net in the weekend's 4-2 win at Aston Villa - but Gabriel Martinelli has been "rubbish" recently apparently.

Ex-Villa striker Gabby Agbonlahor told talkSPORT listeners: "I didn't like Martinelli for me, running through, empty net and he's celebrating before he puts the ball in the back of the net.

"He’s been rubbish for a month and he's scoring a tap-in and celebrating before he's even scored.

"[It’s a] lack of respect for your team-mates. I didn't like it."

'Saka is a target' - Arteta

Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has accused rivals clubs of targeting Gunners star Bukayo Saka.

The England winger went down clutching his ankle in the weekend's 4-2 victory at Aston Villa but looks to have escaped serious injury.

Arteta said: "He got kicked quite a lot today again but he’s going to have to deal with that.

"Not every week but every three days and sometimes in training as well because it’s his game and teams are not stupid and they want to stop him."

'Saka is a target' - Arteta

Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has accused rivals clubs of targeting Gunners star Bukayo Saka.

The England winger went down clutching his ankle in the weekend's 4-2 victory at Aston Villa but looks to have escaped serious injury.

Arteta said: "He got kicked quite a lot today again but he’s going to have to deal with that.

"Not every week but every three days and sometimes in training as well because it’s his game and teams are not stupid and they want to stop him."

Arteta branded "deluded"

Brentford fan Natalie Sawyer has hit out at Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta.

The Spaniard hit out at a failure by VAR to rule out the Bees equaliser in their 1-1 last weekend.

And talkSPORT host Sawyer said: "I think it’s deluded and very disrespectful from Arteta to assume, with 20 or so minutes to go, that you were going to win that game against Brentford.

I know I’m going to say that, it’s my team, but that has really riled me."