Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard says a result against a 'wounded' Arsenal on Wednesday night could help drive Liverpool to a top-three finish.
After a run of five wins and two draws in their last seven league games, Liverpool would close to within two points of the Gunners with victory at the Emirates Stadium.
Gerrard told talkSPORT: "I'm sure Arsenal will be a bit of a wounded animal on Wednesday night.
"But we've certainly got to do what Manchester United and Chelsea have done to them, which is try and give them very little space and hit them on the counter attack. Everyone knows that if you give Arsenal time and space they will absolutely crucify you.
"It's a massive game for us and the target on Wednesday night is to try and get a result where we can push on and try and get third place. Obviously at the end of the season our target is a top-four finish, but if Arsenal give us any sniff of catching them then we want to grab it and hopefully that will be on Wednesday night."
But Gerrard moved to temper growing expectations that Liverpool haven't suddenly solved all their problems, but points to their previous experience of battling at the top end at the business end of the season as a major positive.
"I wouldn't say confidence is sky-high in the dressing room, but it's certainly on the way up. It's certainly improving; we're on a good run. But we're not playing terrifically well to be honest. The last few performances have been more about being solid defensively and nicking important goals. We can certainly play better."
"Having the Champions League [win] experience and also finishing in the top four for the past few years will hold us in good stead when the big games come up. But we're treating every game like a cup final at the moment because we're desperate for this top four. We certainly understand the pressure coming from Manchester City, Tottenham and Aston Villa, and also teams behind them.
"Because the top four is so important financially to everyone and because every player in the league wants to experience Champions League football, there's a lot of teams fighting for it."
