The hope of winning their first Premier League title since 2004 is gradually fading among Arsenal fans. After the unnecessary slip-up against bottom-of-the-table Wolverhampton, a scene immediately after the final whistle symbolized the current situation.
With one game in hand, league leaders Arsenal are now only five points ahead of Manchester City. The direct duel between the two title contenders will take place in mid-April – in Manchester.
Mikel Arteta called the 2-2 draw in Wolverhampton “incredibly disappointing”: “We have to accept that. We have to take a critical look at ourselves because that wasn’t good enough. In the league, it’s a fact that we haven’t played consistently enough in recent months.”
Only Crystal Palace and West Ham (8 each) have dropped more points in the league after taking the lead in the 2026 calendar year than Arsenal (7). “You have to take all the criticism because we haven’t reached the required level,” Arteta lamented: “Everything that is being said may be right because we haven’t done what we should have done.”
With the 2-2 draw after leading 2-0, Arsenal wrote a sad piece of Premier League history: never before had a team at the bottom of the table been able to avoid defeat against the current leaders when trailing by at least two goals – until Wednesday evening.
Arteta criticized the basics, which were no longer right after the break. ” Then you have no dominance, no control over the game,“ criticized the Spaniard: ”It’s better not to judge that. We’re all too emotional right now. You have to take the hit because we deserved it. It’s very easy in the heat of the moment to say things that can hurt the team.“
”We have to get through this painful phase”
Gabriel Jesus also hurt his team after the final whistle when, following a verbal exchange, he was provoked into pushing Yerson Mosquera, triggering a brawl. Riccardo Calafiori was first on the scene to restrain the Brazilian. Arteta also ran onto the pitch to prevent things from getting worse.
The outburst served as a fitting image for the tense nerves in north London. Will the Gunners lose for good soon? “The solution lies on the pitch,” Arteta made clear ahead of the clash with arch-rivals Tottenham: “We have to get through this painful phase, look in the mirror and understand what Sunday’s game now requires.”
