Arsenal take first big step to bottling the Premier League title as Man Utd thrive in nervy Emirates | OneFootball

Arsenal are doing it again, aren’t they?

Manchester United were very good. Michael Carrick is at the wheel. Yadda yadda. More of that in 16 Conclusions.

But Arsenal…wow. This is shaping up to be the worst bottlejob of the lot, and losing at home to their great rivals feels like the first step towards it.

The Emirates felt edgy right from the start. Arsenal looked tentative, predictable, and nervous.

It was a strange first half; the Gunners didn’t necessarily start poorly. For the opening 15 minutes, United couldn’t get out of their own half, but as soon as they did, the equilibrium shifted. Arsenal’s nerves and United’s confidence grew in tandem.

Arsenal’s opener should have settled the anxiety, but if anything, they looked even shakier after taking the lead.

In a game where the first goal felt pivotal, it proved to be so in a way we didn’t see coming. The hosts looked even more unsettled, and a calamitous Martin Zubimendi error led to Bryan Mbeumo’s 37th-minute equaliser.

Under an insignificant amount of pressure, the Premier League’s best among the 20 most expensive signings of the season bobbled a woeful backpass towards David Raya, getting nowhere near it as Mbeumo calmly swept up the mess.

They didn’t look like a team four points clear at the summit with a game in hand. Instead, they looked like a team desperate to relinquish the burden of being chased by Manchester City and Aston Villa.

That passivity bled into the second half, and Michael Carrick’s men took full advantage.

Patrick Dorgu’s go-ahead goal was spectacular, and having spent the evening refusing to take any risks, Arsenal were suddenly forced to show some character and inventiveness. They had to show us what they’re made of, basically.

Mikel Arteta showed what he was made of almost instantaneously, hauling off four players in an unprecedented quadruple substitution before the hour mark.

Benjamin White, Mikel Merino, Ebere Eze, and Viktor Gyokeres replaced Piero Hincapie, Martin Odegaard, Martin Zubimendi, and Gabriel Jesus. It gave Arsenal height, set-piece threat, and a delicious delivery specialist, and, alas, their equaliser came via a six-yard-box scramble from a corner.

But on a day when not even the dark arts could bail Arsenal out, they were undone by another absolute belter, this time from substitute Matheus Cunha.

Ironically, just as the Arsenal supporters looked like they believed and were fully behind their team, Cunha’s sucker punch sent the hosts right back to where they were four minutes earlier.

And that Cunha goal means Arsenal’s lead at the top of the Premier League table is just four points – when it probably should be double figures.

It has been an almighty crash in recent weeks. Three games without a Premier League win. Their first home defeat of the season. The first time in 25 league games they’ve gone 1-0 up and failed to win. And the first time Arsenal have conceded three goals in a match since facing Luton Town back in December 2023.

The connections weren’t there. Again. The individual sparks were non-existent. Again. It felt like the first significant step in Arsenal’s latest bid to bottle the Premier League title. AGAIN.

It happened in quite remarkable fashion too, conceding two screamers against a Manchester United side enjoying a mini-revival under Carrick. The silver lining for Arsenal is that the Red Devils’ hierarchy and supporters might get giddy and hand Carrick the job full-time.

As Gary Neville said on commentary, Arsenal didn’t lose the league today. They wouldn’t have won the league today either. But they are sending all the wrong signals. Wrong for them, right for a Manchester City team seemingly in crisis and an Aston Villa side that has no right to be third.

City’s form has been poor, but they won on Saturday and will build on that momentum. Yet that will pale in comparison to the buzz generated by Arsenal losing at home in a fixture they had no right not to win.

Even at kick-off, it felt like Arsenal players and supporters were bracing for disaster. That atmosphere was on the pitch and in the stands.

Losing the 2022/23 Premier League was down to their title charge coming too soon. 2023/24 was one slip-up too many. Last season was just crap. If Arsenal don’t do it in 2025/26, it will be the worst of the lot by a country mile.

If they do ultimately bottle it, this will feel like the first major step towards doing so.

And as always, no one does more damage to Arsenal’s title hopes than Arsenal themselves.