Nightmare Before Christmas Leaves Arsenal Title Dream in Tatters

What a disastrous week it’s been for Arsenal. Last Saturday, a win over Stoke took them to the top of the Premier League. Nine days and two games later, they find themselves nine points off leaders Chelsea and in a depressingly familiar fourth place in the table. Arsene Wenger’s hopes of lifting a first title in 12 years seem to be disappearing by the day.

Ordinarily, losing at Manchester City would be forgivable. However, the fact that this was a second loss in the space of six days made it particularly painful. Moreover, the manner of the defeat made this is a bitter pill for the Arsenal fans to swallow. Inexplicably, the Gunners looked unmotivated and lacking in basic organisation.

Monday: Draw Bayern Tuesday: Blow one-goal lead at EvertonSunday: Blow one-goal lead at City Happy holidays, Arsenal. pic.twitter.com/5YNFfkIGMg

— Bleacher Report UK (@br_uk) December 19, 2016

It’s worth pointing out too that this was a dramatically weakened City team. Pep Guardiola’s men had no Vincent Kompany at the back, nor Fernandinho protecting the defence in midfield. Playmaker Ilkay Gundogan was absent, and Sergio Aguero was still suspended after his lunge at David Luiz against Chelsea. This was a great opportunity to record a victory against a championship rival.

Arsenal had the perfect start, too. City’s defensive vulnerability was one of the major talking points in the build-up to the game, and that weakness was exposed inside the first five minutes. A lightning-quick counter-attack saw Hector Bellerin play the ball into Alexis Sanchez. The Chilean showed great skill and awareness to bring the ball under his spell before playing an inch-perfect reverse pass through to Theo Walcott, whose finish was immaculate. 

The goal should have handed Arsenal the initiative. However, seemingly encouraged by their counter-attack success, the Gunners sat off City and allowed them to slowly assume control of the game. The idea was seemingly to defend deep and look to catch City out on the break, but there was no real coherence to the way Arsenal went about their plan. Alexis seemed eager to press from the front, but he was often alone in that endeavour. He waved to the other forwards to join him in looking to win the …

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