ARSENAL 1-2 BOURNEMOUTH: The Gunners’ Premier League title hopes suffered a considerable setback following a shock defeat at the Emirates
It was hard to believe you were watching the potential Premier League champions. Arsenal were abject, short of ideas, nonchalant, sloppy, weak, devoid of character and ultimately outclassed by hard-working Bournemouth.But however poor their players were, much of this defeat must also rest with Mikel Arteta. In many respects Arsenal were a by-product of their overly-animated and emotional head coach, particularly in the opening 20 minutes.
The Spaniard had urged Gunners supporters on Friday to “bring their lunch and dinner” to the Emirates but on the field, there was a sense of panic that sparked restlessness and frustration in the stands.
Bournemouth made smart tactical fouls to disrupt Arsenal’s rhythm and Arteta was like a bubbling volcano ready to erupt as he sprung around his technical area while hassling fourth official Gavin Ward.
He was so agitated, he simply could not sit still, particularly after Martin Zubimendi trickled a dismal straightforward pass out of play when attempting to find the feet of Ben White.
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Moments later, the ambitious Cherries broke the deadlock through Eli Junior Kroupi after fine work from Adrien Truffert and the opener prompted a swift change in Arteta’s demeanour and Arsenal’s approach.
The hungry Double-chasing boss turned around to the home crowd and urged them to calm down via hand gestures.
In fairness, his team, who later equalised through Viktor Gyokeres’ thunderbolt penalty, immediately became more controlled and self-assured in possession, which begged the question: why was there such desperation to blow Bournemouth away?
There’s respectable substance behind Andoni Iraola’s side’s 12-match unbeaten streak, they are a tough nut to crack but instead of attempting to wear and grind them down, Arsenal appeared set on steamrolling them from the get-go.
It was poor judgement and the approach blew up in their face as Bournemouth rose to the challenge and were bang up for disrupting Arsenal’s title charge for the second successive season following a shock 2-1 victory at the Emirates last May.
Make no mistake, Arsenal are now firmly in trouble following Alex Scott’s well-crafted winner because Manchester City have built considerable momentum after last month’s Carabao Cup final triumph at Wembley.
Their route directly back into the title fray is already mapped out in front of them. Beat Chelsea at Stamford Bridge today and beat Arsenal at the Etihad Stadium next Sunday and they will be level on points if they win their game in hand at home to Crystal Palace.
Suddenly, Arsenal’s home fixtures against Newcastle and Fulham plus routine away trips across London to West Ham and Crystal Palace no longer look like formalities.
Two years ago, the Gunners were heavily criticised for celebrating a goalless draw at Manchester City as come the end of the season, they fell two points short of Pep Guardiola’s champions at the summit.
A draw would undoubtedly be a favourable result next weekend as this time around, Arsenal lead the standings and are not part of the chasing pack but it’s a dangerous game to go there and play for a point.
If Arsenal truly want to end their gruelling 22-year wait for Premier League title glory, only a statement win at the Etihad will do and to achieve that, you can’t help but feel Arteta needs the cavalry back.
Captain Martin Odegaard has endured another unspecified injury setback, Bukayo Saka has not been seen since the Carabao Cup final due to a fitness problem, Jurrien Timber has now spent one month sidelined with a groin issue while Riccardo Calafiori has not started back-to-back Premier League games since early-December.
The brutal reality is that Arsenal will now struggle to get over the line without players of such importance because those who have stepped in during their absence have struggled desperately following three defeats in the past four matches in all competitions.
Arteta’s men now require a greater level of maturity, responsibility and conviction if they are to go the distance.
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