Arsenal News The One Moment That Decided Wembley Before Arteta Could React
Arsenal’s title dream teeters on the edge
Arsenal suffered a 2-1 defeat to Manchester City at the Etihad on Sunday, with Erling Haaland’s 65th-minute strike proving decisive after Kai Havertz had levelled Rayan Cherki’s opener. City now sit three points behind Arsenal in the table but crucially hold a game in hand, meaning they can pull level on points if they win that fixture.
The Gunners entered the week as clear favourites to end their 22-year wait for the title, yet this defeat, their second on the bounce, has ripped momentum away from the north London club in the most damaging fashion possible.
Former Manchester United chief scout Mick Brown told Football Insider that Arsenal’s familiar springtime slippage should constitute a “major” concern for both Arteta and the club’s hierarchy.
Brown pointed specifically to dropped points against Bournemouth at home, and earlier slip-ups against Wolves and Nottingham Forest, as the moments that gifted City a route back into the race. He argued that Arsenal lacked players capable of producing match-winning moments of individual brilliance, something City possess across four or five positions on any given afternoon.
“Serious questions are going to be asked of Mikel Arteta,” Brown told Football Insider.
“They were missing Saka, definitely, because he brings something that none of their other players do in terms of being able to counter and break teams down.
“But when you look at Man City, there are four or five players on the pitch at any given time who can give you a moment of magic and change the game.
“Arsenal don’t have that, so from that perspective, there’s not a lot Arteta can do.
“The thing is, this game against Man City shouldn’t have mattered as much as it did when you look at the position Arsenal were in a couple of weeks ago.
“They were beaten at home by Bournemouth and that closed the gap, and going back further, they dropped points against teams like Wolves and Nottingham Forest.
“It’s easy to look back and say they should’ve won this game or that game, but if you want to win the league title, you have to beat those types of teams.
“But the major concern is that it seems to happen at the same time every season, Arsenal start dropping points, and then the finger has to be pointed at the manager.”
The recurring April problem Arteta cannot ignore
Arsenal wobbled in April 2022/23, then won their last six games the following season but still missed out by two points as Tottenham gifted City the title. Arteta’s team had not lost back-to-back league fixtures since 31 December 2023, a run stretching 835 days, before this week arrived. The pattern, whether entirely fair or not, follows Arsenal into every decisive stretch of the campaign. Brown’s critique carries significance precisely because the losses do not arrive randomly; they cluster at the same point each spring, inviting the same uncomfortable scrutiny of the manager.
What Arsenal must do with five games remaining?
Arsenal remain alive in the UEFA Champions League semi-finals, where they face Atlético Madrid, while five Premier League fixtures still stand between them and the finish line. Three points separate the two title rivals, and every remaining Arsenal result carries enormous consequence.
The squad Arteta assembled, with Martin Zubimendi anchoring midfield, Viktor Gyokeres leading the attack, and Bukayo Saka absent on Sunday, carries genuine quality. Arsenal’s task now is simple in theory and brutal in practice: win every game and force City to drop points. The title remains in Arsenal’s hands, just barely, and Arteta knows that.
Does Arsenal’s recurring late-season inconsistency reflect a genuine tactical limitation in Arteta’s system, or is it simply the cost of competing without a true match-winner in wide areas?
From Arsenal’s standpoint, blaming the system alone misses the bigger picture. Saka’s absence on Sunday removed the one player who changes matches through individual quality, and without him, Arsenal’s attack becomes more predictable and easier to defend.
The big reason why Arsenal are favourites to sign this €45m full-back
The broader squad investment this summer, Gyokeres, Zubimendi, and Madueke, proves the club are actively addressing depth. However, Arsenal’s points total of 70 from 33 games reflects a side that win consistently; it is the absence of a killer instinct in pivotal moments, rather than a broken structure, that costs them. City’s ability to produce Haaland-level interventions at will represents a gap that transfers alone cannot close overnight. Arsenal fans are right to feel frustrated, but Arteta’s project remains structurally sound; this title race is not over yet.