Martin Odegaard has withdrawn from the Norway squad, saying he has ‘listened to my body’ after being sidelined by an ankle injury while playing for his country in August [Alexander Canillas/SPP]

MIKEL Arteta will be urging his Arsenal players to “show their teeth” when they return to Premier League action after yet another international break.

With almost a third of the season gone, the Gunners find themselves sitting fourth in the table, an eye-watering nine points behind early pace-setters Liverpool.

They’ve won just one of their last five league games, dropping 10 points along the way, and leaving many supporters and pundits alike questioning whether Arteta’s side still have the hunger to challenge for the title.

Next up, Arsenal host Nottingham Forest at Ashburton Grove on Saturday, November 23, and Arteta’s clarion call to his players is crystal clear: “We have to win, win and win.”

Discussing his demands at such a difficult time, the Gunners boss said: “When it gets nasty, show your teeth and show how much you want it. When it’s Disneyland, it’s easy, everyone is next to you and telling you how beautiful you are, and when it gets dark and difficult, everyone is questioning it. That’s when I want to see people, that’s when I’m always looking around, [seeing] who’s going to step into that role.”

Asked what is needed to bridge the gap between the frontrunners, the Spaniard added: “Win, win and win because these guys, they don’t stop winning, so that’s what we have to do.”

One of Arsenal’s biggest issues this season has been key players getting injured while representing their country. So Arteta will be understandably nervous about what news comes back from the treatment room in the coming days. He said: “What I am just praying is that after the international break I have the team fully equipped physically, they are available, and they are fit because it has been an absolute nightmare for eight weeks.

“Issue after issue, not only the ones that are not able to play, but the ones that are able to play only for certain moments, only for certain days, not able to train. So I’m just asking that because the team, the desire that they have and how much we want it, there’s no question about that. So, it’s going to come, we just need that on our side to be able to be more consistent.”

Arteta will be able to monitor the current shape of his squad up close after a number of players withdrew from international duty. England duo Declan Rice and Bukayo Saka are the biggest concerns after limping out of Arsenal’s 1-1 draw at Chelsea on Sunday, with Arteta later admitting: “It doesn’t look good because two players of that importance tell you that they cannot continue in the game, so it obviously isn’t good news.”

Martin Odegaard has also withdrawn from the Norway squad, saying he has “listened to my body” and returned to London to continue his recovery.

The Arsenal captain started for the club for the first time since August at Stamford Bridge after being sidelined by an ankle injury that he picked up while playing for his country. “After discussions with the medical staff at the national team, we have unfortunately concluded that the situation is not good enough to play these matches,” Odegaard told the official Norwegian Football Association website.

“I’ve been through a long training period and when you haven’t played football in the last nine weeks, it’s natural not to be 100 per cent yet. I need to listen to my body, complete this rehab process and get my foot back in good shape.”