Arsenal went on the attack and it was best they'd looked in weeks - Arteta will cling to that

AFC BournemouthArsenalAston VillaBrentfordBrighton & Hove AlbionBurnleyChelseaCrystal PalaceEvertonFulhamLeeds UnitedLiverpoolManchester CityManchester UnitedNewcastle UnitedNottingham ForestSunderlandTottenham HotspurWest Ham UnitedWolverhampton WanderersScores & ScheduleStandingsFantasyThe Athletic FC NewsletterPodcastsPL Title Race Darren Staples/AFP via Getty Images Share articleShortly after the full-time whistle blew on Arsenal’s 2-1 defeat at Manchester City, a weary team trudged over to the corner of the ground occupied by the travelling fans. Arsenal had lost the game, and yet another chunk of their diminishing lead in the table. It might have been nine points — it is now just three. It is an undeniably disappointing outcome and a considerable blow to their title hopes. But there was no mass walkout, no opprobrium. The away fans rose to salute their team with warm applause and chants of support. They still believe: this isn’t over yet. In performance terms, this was Arsenal’s most encouraging showing in weeks. As Arsenal feel City breathing ever closer down their neck, that is what they will cling to. After hosting Bournemouth last weekend, this was a second consecutive 2-1 Premier League loss — but a drastically different display. After last month’s Carabao Cup final, this was also a second consecutive defeat by City, too — but this time Arsenal made a game of it. It was a different approach, too. With form, confidence and fluidity in short supply, most expected Arsenal to sit in and lean on their defensive nous. Instead, with Kai Havertz and Martin Odegaard restored to the side, Arsenal were front-footed and aggressive in the press. Switching Eberechi Eze out to the left gave Arsenal better technical ability and ball-retention in the opponents’ half. Odegaard dropped deep, helping Arsenal to play through a City press that they found impassable at Wembley. “We came here to win the game,” manager Mikel Arteta said afterwards. “The message was clear from three days before. We prepared to do that, to take the game to the areas that we believe we could win it. “We’ve done it. So we proved that we are there. But the reality is in the two boxes today was a difference and that’s what decided the game.” Errant finishing meant Arsenal failed to beat City. But play like this, and they look like a team capable of beating Newcastle United, Fulham, West Ham United, Burnley and Crystal Palace in their five remaining Premier League games. Arsenal lost here — there is no escaping that — but looked more like winners than they have for some time. In the dressing room after the game, there was disappointment but no despondency. The focus turned to the five games ahead. “It’s a new league now,” said Arteta. “They have a game in hand. We have three points of advantage and five games to play, so everything is still to play for. So we know how much we want it and we’re not going to stop and we’re going to go again, that’s for sure.” The Arsenal manager insisted his own conviction has not wavered. “I believe today, I believed on Wednesday, a week ago, because I see them every day and I know the level that we have,” said Arteta. Of course, he has to say that. He can hardly say anything else. The worry for Arsenal is that if this game proved anything, it’s that City are more ruthless, more clinical. Erling Haaland was the rightful match-winner, dispatching his goal with a surety that eluded Havertz on more than one occasion. “Just look at the images,” protested Arteta of some of Arsenal’s near-misses. “It’s incredible how the ball doesn’t go in. So there is an element of luck. There is an element there of timing, of execution. It’s a lot of things that have to be your way. They didn’t go our way, and we have to recognise that at the end, winning and not winning is going to come down to these moments.” It is the trade-off Arsenal face when choosing between their two centre-forwards. Havertz’s all-round game is excellent, but his finishing is not especially clinical. Gyokeres is a more natural goalscorer, but a less complete footballer. The ideal would be to have a player who offers both, but Arsenal weren’t able to find one of those in last summer’s market. Unfortunately for Arsenal, City already have the most obvious example. Arsenal will take comfort from the fact that they were at least able to fashion some chances from open play, rather than their characteristic reliance on set pieces. The tone of Arteta’s press conference matched the reception from the away fans in being surprisingly upbeat. It is a necessity: they cannot mourn the points advantage they have lost, nor grieve for the opportunities to extend their lead that have passed them by. There’s also the small matter of a Champions League semi-final to consider. Arsenal must simply look forward and embrace the challenges ahead. In spite of this defeat, they look better equipped to face them than they have for some time. Spot the pattern. Connect the terms Find the hidden link between sports terms James McNicholas has covered Arsenal extensively for more than a decade. He has written for ESPN, Bleacher Report and FourFourTwo Magazine, and is the co-host of the Arsecast Extra Podcast. Follow James on Twitter @gunnerblog