Arsenal displayed a poor performance on Saturday in the English Premier League as visiting Bournemouth snatched a 2-1 victory right at the Emirates.
It was a damaging defeat for the league leaders, who have only six games to go, with Manchester City having two games in hand and set to play Mikel Arteta’s side next.
Despite having a comfortable nine-point lead over City, Arsenal never looked comfortable all afternoon and were only lucky to score via a penalty, in a decision where the referee ignored proximity when the ball hit Ryan Christie with his arm outstretched.
Ahead of the game, Arteta had called for perspective, defending his team as the only side across Europe to have played the most games this season.
They had scraped a 1-0 victory midweek at Sporting Lisbon, with a return leg scheduled for midweek.
But for all the talk of being the most consistent and targeting double trophies, it appears once more Arsenal may settle for another runner-up position, which will set a record as the team to finish second on the table four times consecutively.
On the day, the warning signs were there as Arsenal played with little urgency, poor marking, and no real attack until Eli Junior Kroupi scored, capping excellent passes in the 17th minute before Arsenal could register a shot on target via a penalty in the 35th minute.
Viktor Gyokeres’ goal appeared to have galvanized the team heading into half-time. Unfortunately, Bournemouth had other ideas, with Alex Scott scoring in the 74th minute to consign Arsenal to a damaging defeat at a crucial stage of the season.
