Mikel Arteta has challenged his strikers to score more than 20 goals in a season and backed Viktor Gyökeres as the Premier League leaders prepare to face Liverpool.

The Sweden striker is the club’s joint-top scorer in the league with Leandro Trossard on five. No Arsenal player has passed the 20-goal mark in the league since Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang managed 22 in the 2019-20 season, Arteta’s first in charge.

Gyökeres has not scored from open play since the 2-0 win at Burnley at the start of November and Arsenal are on course to set a Premier League record if they win the title. Chelsea’s Frank Lampard in 2004-05 and Manchester City’s Ilkay Gündogan in 2020-21 are tied on 13 as the lowest top scorers in a team crowned champions. Dennis Bergkamp holds that record for Arsenal with 16 in 1997-98.

Arteta was asked whether that was a concern or whether he preferred to spread the goals around the team. “We want the goals to be spread and our strikers to score over 20 goals,” he said. “That’s the idea.”

Kai Havertz, last season’s leading league scorer with nine, could return against Liverpool after a long-term knee injury and Gabriel Jesus is pushing for a start in place of Gyökeres. But Arteta rejected suggestions that the competition could bring the best out of the player signed from Sporting for £64m in the summer.

“I don’t think it’s related,” he said. “We’re not going to change Viktor’s desire or his attitude or his work rate or how much he’s willing to score goals because he’s got another player in [competition], because of the circumstances. Because sometimes there’s an element of luck to score goals as well or energy that has to go in your way. And it will come. The good thing is that the team is performing really well and winning matches.”

Thierry Henry scored 30 goals and won the Golden Boot when Arsenal last claimed the title in 2004. Arteta’s side have more points and goals at this stage than Arsène Wenger’s Invincibles but the manager dismissed comparisons to that team and insisted Arsenal have a “point to prove”, starting against Liverpool.

Arteta said of the Invincibles: “They won consistently and created a history and a legacy. We have to do that. In the last two or three years we’ve had stats and more points and more goals and a history. At the end we have to translate that to major trophies and what we want to do.

“Probably now what we are doing would have been enough, but now it’s not enough and we have to make the margins even bigger. That’s what we have to do.

“Every week we have a point to prove. We had it a few days ago against Bournemouth after a great win against [Aston] Villa and it’s going to continue like that.”