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Arsenal goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale has insisted the Gunners are relishing the pressure that comes with being top of the Premier League.
After a number of years battling to finish in the top four, Arsenal have taken a huge jump this season and find themselves five points clear of Manchester City at the top of the table, with many seeing Mikel Arteta’s side as the favourites to win the title.
With supporters now demanding victories from every game, Ramsdale admitted the Arsenal squad are loving facing that increased pressure.
“It’s definitely a pressure which is so much nicer to have than the opposite side,” the goalkeeper said.
“It’s an enjoyment and because not a lot of us have been here before, we don’t really know how to handle it. So we’re just going in and playing the games as if we were 10th, 12th, with our group of teammates and trying to win as many games as possible.
“And when you play here at this stadium, or even away, the fans, honestly it’s so much easier to play when things are going well and we’re relishing it.”
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It’s a new feeling for Ramsdale, whose Premier League career before this season was largely spent locked in relegation battles from which former employers Sheffield United and Bournemouth failed to emerge.
“I found out the hard way that you can’t get too low or you can’t get too high,” he continued.
“If you lose a game of football that can’t take over your whole life, otherwise I would have been sat in a house not seeing the outside world for a long period of my short career.
“Obviously, I want to win every single game and do well, but it’s not the be-all and end-all at the minute.
“Of course, if we get to four, five games to go and we are still in the same position that’ll definitely change. But for now, it’s just playing with a group of my mates and enjoying it.”
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On this edition of The Chronicles of a Gooner, part of the 90min podcast network, Harry Symeou looks back at Arsenal’s 4-0 win over Everton that extended their lead at the top of the Premier League table to five points.
If you can’t see this embed, click here to listen to the podcast!
