LONDON, England (AFP) — Mikel Arteta has revealed Arsenal’s preparations for their 3-1 win at Brentford were hampered by a virus that swept through his squad.

Several of Arsenal’s stars were struck down by the illness on the eve of the crucial English Premier League clash on Wednesday.

German forward Kai Havertz was sent home with the bug, while England midfielder Declan Rice was only able to come off the bench in the second half.

Martin Odegaard reportedly struggled with the virus ahead of kick-off and although he was able to start, the Arsenal captain made a mistake that led to Bryan Mbeumo’s opener and was replaced in the second half.

But the Gunners recovered impressively at the Gtech Community Stadium as they ignored the illness outbreak to climb back into the title race.

“It affected players on the pitch and off the pitch,” Arteta said after second-placed Arsenal moved within six points of leaders Liverpool, who have a game in hand.

“It is nothing serious. But it wasn’t the ideal situation. In relation to the symptoms, with Kai it was obvious. He wasn’t feeling well at all. He had very clear symptoms so stay away from it, put him in a car, and go back to London.

“These things happen. In this period, there are always things thrown at you, infections, viruses, so I try to delay the line-up as late as possible because you can get up in the morning and unfortunately have a surprise like this.”

Arteta is hopeful the virus will have abated for his side’s trip to Brighton on Saturday.

Arsenal closed the gap on Premier League leaders Liverpool to six points as Jesus extended his hot-streak, scoring their first.

It was the Brazilian’s sixth goal in his last four games after he scored just once in his first 20 matches this season.

Mikel Merino and Gabriel Martinelli netted in quick succession soon after half-time to ensure Arsenal moved into second place above Nottingham Forest.

“We won in a difficult stadium against a good opponent. The record they have here is incredible and when you go 1-0 down it makes it even harder,” Arteta said.

“Especially when you go a goal down early in the game it becomes a mountain to climb, but we remained patient.

“We had to manage the situation emotionally. We were very clinical in the box. Jesus’s form is very important.”

Excluding their 5-1 rout of Crystal Palace, the Gunners had spluttered through their last four league games with lacklustre draws against Fulham and Everton followed by a narrow win over Ipswich.

But Arsenal’s first Premier League game of 2025 provided compelling evidence that they are ready to compete in the title race with Liverpool, who have a game in hand on the north Londoners.

Runners-up to Manchester City for the last two seasons, Arsenal are unbeaten in 12 games in all competitions, a revitalising run that now includes four successive wins.

“We can only win our next match and see what happens. It’s not in our hands,” Arteta said of chasing Liverpool.