Mikel Arteta believes it’s incredibly hard to win the Premier League because you have to be consistent week in, week out, but is he right?

The Premier League is one of the most competitive in the world for two reasons: we attract some of the best players around and there isn’t as big of a gap between the lower teams and the top ones when compared to the likes of La Liga. Although the odds may be in one club’s favour going into a clash, it’s not a forgone conclusion until the final whistle goes.

Therefore, getting consistent results isn’t just a matter of turning up every week, dusting off your kit and strolling onto the pitch. It’s intense and incredibly difficult.

“It is something different to be consistent individually and consistent as a team, they are two different things but in the end they are related,” Arteta said.

“Now for someone to be consistent in the Premier League you have to win every week and compete at the highest level every week – but to compete for the Premier League is really, really hard.

“To be consistent, I think individually you start with your own preparation, your mentality, your desire, the way you face every training session, the way you communicate with your other players and everything.”

The midfielder added, “They cannot be lost by one per cent at any moment because that is gift for the opposition so that is the minimum you can demand.”

Of course, when you look at it like this, it is hard. However, this season, most of the top teams are dropping points – just look at Chelsea. Is this making it easier to win or harder?

On the face of it, it could make it easier. If we continue collecting points in the way we have been. And that’s the issue… if. On the flip side, the inadequacies of the likes of Chelsea might make us complacent and susceptible to throwing away unnecessary points because we don’t see any threat.

All we can do is carry on being consistent, as our captain says, and not pay attention to our rivals. Unless we’re playing them of course… then we probably should…