Arsenal’s bid to win the English Premier League for the first time since 2004 is in danger of imploding, but manager Mikel Arteta remains adamant the leaders can cope with the pressure of the title race.
Arteta’s side blew a two-goal lead for a second successive game as West Ham United hit back to snatch a 2-2 draw at the London Stadium on Sunday.
After squandering the same advantage in last weekend’s 2-2 draw at Liverpool, the Gunners once again paid the price for taking their foot off the gas.
Photo: EPA-EFE
Although Arsenal are four points clear of second-placed Manchester City, it is the champions who have all the momentum heading into the final weeks of a gripping title battle.
With a home game against Arsenal looming on Wednesday next week, City know they will be crowned champions if they win their last eight games.
Ominously for Arsenal, manager Pep Guardiola’s men have already beaten them twice this season, winning 3-1 at the Emirates Stadium in the league in February, just weeks after knocking the Gunners out of the FA Cup with a 1-0 victory in Manchester. For Arsenal to no longer be in control of their own destiny is a bitter pill for Arteta to swallow after the north Londoners’ long spell at the top this term.
Arteta has said that Arsenal’s untimely collapses against West Ham and Liverpool were self-inflicted, with the Spaniard especially frustrated by the way his players took their strong position for granted on Sunday.
However, he refuses to accept it was the tension of being chased so relentlessly by City that provoked the calamitous results.
“I’m certain it is not the pressure. It is we misunderstood what was needed in that moment,” Arteta said.
“It was very different to Liverpool in terms of the pattern of play, but that is the next stage, you have to play with the same purpose when it is 2-0,” he said. “You have to have more composure to finish the game. When you drop your level so quickly the game is there for the opponent.”
Before the summit meeting with City, Arsenal host Southampton on Friday.
A victory over the bottom of the table Saints would move Arsenal seven points clear of City, who do not play in the league next weekend due to their FA Cup semi-final against Sheffield United on Saturday.
Fueled by Erling Haaland’s record-breaking goal-spree City — winners of their past 10 games in all competitions — have the edge in the remaining matches after the Arsenal showdown.
Their toughest tests could come on trips to Fulham and Brentford, although their progress in the UEFA Champions League might also pose a distraction.
Arsenal’s trickiest fixtures could be a daunting visit to Newcastle United and a home game against in-form Brighton & Hove Albion, while a London derby against struggling Chelsea cannot be taken for granted.
Arteta does not believe Arsenal’s young squad are running out of steam toward the end of their unexpected title bid.
However, he plans to spend the days leading up to the Southampton game searching for answers to the blip that threatens to ruin their dream season.
“Fatigue? No. The best way to put it is to convince the team they can do it. We have to dig very deep and find the solution,” he said.
“We stopped playing with the purpose to score a third and fourth one. It looked too easy. We gave them hope and credit to West Ham, they took it,” he said. “We need that ruthless mindset to go kill a team and we haven’t done it.”
Yu Yao-hsing on Tuesday nabbed Taiwan’s only goal in the final round of qualifiers for the 2027 AFC Asian Cup, as they fell 3-1 to Sri Lanka at Taipei Municipal Stadium. Early goals from Sri Lanka in the first half left Taiwan struggling to get on the board, and Christopher Tiao’s own goal at 53 minutes sealed the team’s fate in the third round of qualifiers. While acknowledging that the defeat, Taiwan’s sixth in Group D, was disappointing, head coach Matt Ross said he saw reasons to stay positive about the team’s development. “There were lots of positive signs in terms of the
Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli yesterday vowed to “keep raising the bar” after winning the Japanese Grand Prix to become the youngest driver in Formula One history to lead the championship standings. The 19-year-old Italian took advantage of a mid-race safety car to jump into the lead after a dreadful start from pole position, crossing the line ahead of McLaren’s Oscar Piastri and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc. Antonelli’s Suzuka victory came two weeks after the first grand prix win of his career in China, and sent him top of the championship standings after three races, nine points ahead of team-mate George Russell. Mercedes are struggling to
INDIGESTION: Italy failed to qualify for the World Cup for a third consecutive time after a 4-1 defeat to Bosnia on penalties in a loss Gattuso said was ‘difficult to digest’ Coach Graham Arnold on Tuesday challenged his players to “shock the world” after Iraq became the 48th and final team to qualify for the FIFA World Cup with a nerve-shredding 2-1 win over Bolivia in an intercontinental playoff in Mexico, as Bosnia and Herzegovina, Turkey, the Czech Republic, Sweden and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) also secured their places at the finals. Iraq, whose preparations were disrupted by the war in the Middle East, sealed their first appearance at the finals in 40 years and are to play in Group I against France, Senegal and Norway. Goals from Ali al-Hamadi
Teng Kai-wei, the only Taiwanese player on an opening-day roster in this year’s Major League Baseball (MLB) season, took his first win of the year with the Houston Astros in his season debut. Teng entered in relief in the top of the fifth inning against the Los Angeles Angels on Saturday, with the Astros trailing 5-0. He pitched 2-1/3 scoreless innings with two strikeouts, as Houston scored 11 runs during his outing to snatch an 11-9 comeback victory. The win is the Astros’ first of the season and the third of Teng’s MLB career. “It’s my first time pitching for the Astros, so
RSS