Mikel Arteta expects Arsenal to keep a close eye on potential opportunities to strengthen his squad in the January transfer window.

Arsenal are two points clear at the summit of the Premier League ahead of a crunch clash with third-place Aston Villa on Tuesday.

The Gunners have had to cope without a glut of key players this season, with Martin Odegaard, Kai Havertz, Gabriel Jesus and Gabriel Magalhaes all out of action for long stints, while Ben White, Riccardo Calafiori, Cristhian Mosquera and Jurrien Timber have all sustained injuries lately.

Arsenal were busy in the summer, spending big on Eberechi Eze, Martin Zubimendi and Viktor Gyokeres, but Arteta wants the club to be ready to strike again in the transfer market as they aim to win the Premier League title for the first time since 2004.

"Depending, as I said, on the availability of certain players," Arteta said, when asked if Arsenal would make use of the market.

"The window is there. We're Arsenal. Now, we have to be looking at it.

"Okay, what do we need? We have to be actively looking. And then can we do it or not?

"That's a different story, but our job is to always be very prepared because something can happen.

"So, hopefully [a] very positive [transfer window].

"We're going to be really aware of the situation and the timescales of certain players, going from the front line to the back line.

"That's the depth that you need. When you look across the other clubs as well, they have 24 or 25 squad players, so there's nothing special in our squad.

"The thing is that we have more injuries than expected, some of them not avoidable, I would say. But we want to be better, and we know how important having the right availability with players is going to be in the season."

Arsenal are the favourites to win the title, according to Opta's supercomputer, which ranks their chances at 64.9%.

However, should they fail to beat Villa, then that will open the door for Manchester City – who face Sunderland on Thursday – to take the lead at the start of 2026.