A shadow of a lack of composure could cost Arsenal the title in the Premier League? The image of Mikel Arteta kneeling in his technical area after Kai Havertz missed a header in stoppage time will be etched in the memories of Gunners fans. More than just a moment, it symbolizes this team’s Achilles’ heel: missed opportunities and the absence of a ruthless finisher. This is what allowed Manchester City to win 2-1, drawing dangerously close to the top of the league.
This clash, touted as the true “decisive” match of the Premier League, repeated the narrative of last month’s Carabao Cup final, where City also came out on top against Arsenal. Erling Haaland, with absolute dominance over Gabriel Magalhaes, scored the winning goal in the 65th minute, solidifying the citizens’ victory and shifting the momentum of the title race to Pep Guardiola’s side. What was clear is that composure and lethal instinct are crucial at these moments.
Despite Arsenal playing an intense and balanced match, with both coaches highlighting the “narrow margins” that determined the result, the missed opportunities by the Londoners are the reason why the title race remains completely open.
Mikel Arteta, Arsenal’s manager, did not hide his frustration: “The reality is that the difference was in both boxes – and that decided the game.” The team did not play poorly, far from it, but the lack of a killer instinct could seriously jeopardize their dream of winning the first Premier League title in 22 years.
In this match, Arteta set up offensively, trying to dominate possession with the simultaneous inclusion of Eberechi Eze and Martin Odegaard, a rare combination this season. Kai Havertz, replacing summer signing Viktor Gyokeres, was responsible for Arsenal’s equalizing goal, shortly after Rayan Cherki’s brilliant opening strike. The German forward took advantage of a mistake by goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma to score, but it was the two monumental misses in the second half that will linger in the memory: a clear chance he failed to convert and a header in the 95th minute, from inside the six-yard box, that just went wide, leaving Arteta devastated on the bench.
Other moments of misfortune also marked the match: Eze hit the post with a shot from the edge of the area, and Gabriel Magalhaes saw a header following a free kick also strike the crossbar. Even so, the Gunners were unable to breach the wall of City.
The million-pound acquisition of Viktor Gyokeres for £64 million last summer was seen as the solution to the need for a lethal striker. However, despite his 18 goals in all competitions this season, doubts remain about whether the 27-year-old forward possesses the necessary characteristics to be the goal scorer that Arsenal desperately needs.
Asked how to make his team more lethal, Arteta responded with brutal honesty: “It’s complicated. We saw the footage; it’s unbelievable how the ball doesn’t go in. There’s an element of luck, timing, execution – many things that have to be on our side. This time, they weren’t, and we have to accept that winning or not will depend on these moments.”
The problem with Arsenal’s forwards is evident. Rarely does a title contender lack a player in the discussion for player of the season, but at this moment it is difficult to identify a relentless scorer among the available options: Gyokeres, Havertz, Gabriel Martinelli, Noni Madueke, Eze, and Gabriel Jesus have qualities, but none stands out as a natural born scorer.
Gyokeres, despite his versatility, proves to be particularly effective against mid to lower table teams. Havertz scored his first goal of the season in this match, while Leandro Trossard is experiencing a drought of 22 games without scoring. Madueke has only two league goals, and Eze has six, although five of those were scored in just two matches against rival Tottenham.
This lack of a true finisher could be Arsenal’s Achilles’ heel in the title race, especially when facing teams like Manchester City, who have a scorer of Haaland’s caliber, whose coolness and efficiency define champions.
Arsenal urgently needs to find solutions to this shortcoming if they want to ensure that the title race does not fizzle out at this stage of the championship, risking seeing their dreams slip through their fingers.
This article first appeared on Apito Final.
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