Under pressure Mikel Arteta claims February will define season and what is out of Arsenal's hands

- Mikel Arteta has stated that the embattled Arsenal will know where they stand by end of February

- They succumbed to a second successive defeat in the Premier League following loss to Aston Villa

- Arteta says the true state of things will become clearer at the end of this month

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Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has stated that the Gunners will know their true status in all competitions by the end of February.

The Gunners, who have suffered back-to-back league defeats, face a testing four-game run between now and the end of the month.

They succumbed to a second successive defeat in the Premier League after falling to a lowly 1-0 defeat to Aston Villa on Saturday, February 6.

Villa striker Ollie Watkins scored the only goal in the game 755 seconds into the encounter to help his side complete the double over Mikel Arteta’s men.

They are billed to face Leeds United on Sunday night, February 14 and ahead of the cracker, the Spanish tactician said via Daily Star:

“Yes, it’s going to be crucial. We don’t have any margin now in the league and in the Europa League, they are knockout games.

“So, the moment you don’t do what you have to, you are out.

“The level of attention and the level of performances are going to be really high and demanding - and we have to face the challenge and go through them.”

Meanwhile, Liverpool were condemned to their third straight Premier League defeat during their visit to the King Power Stadium by Leicester City earlier this weekend.

Having already lost to Brighton and Hove Albion and Manchester City, the Reds suffered a disappointing 3-1 loss to the Foxes in a manner that questions their title ambition.

They have now conceded 32 goals in 24 league games this season, just one fewer than they did in the whole of 2019-20 as they sit fourth on the log with 40 points - 13 behind Man City.

However, Legit.ng earlier reported that Manchester United travel to The Hawthorns to battle West Bromwich Albion for maximum points in a bid to get their title chase back on track.

The Red Devils currently sit third on the table with 45 points and could move a step up if they get a favourable result after their outing.

They claimed a slim win over West Ham United in their FA Cup fifth-round encounter earlier this week and they will be hoping to maintain the winning status this time around.

Babajide is a digital publishing expert, an avid sports content thinker, researcher and writer. He is a graduate of Guidance and Counselling, having bagged his B.SC (ED) from the Ekiti State University. He can be reached on Twitter @JideOrevba