Arsenal break own unwanted record after latest collapse hands title to Man City
The season that Arsenal’s players and Mikel Arteta had envisioned eight games ago did not turn out to be a record-breaking one. Their disappointing end to the season was worsened by a 1-0 loss to Nottingham Forest on Saturday.
This loss secured Manchester City as the champions of the 2022/23 Premier League, even though Pep Guardiola’s team still had three games remaining.
It also indicates that Arsenal have only managed to accumulate nine points out of a potential 24 in their recent matches, despite previously being in a commanding position in the title race.
An emotional Arteta admitted afterwards his side had fallen short when it mattered, saying: “I apologise. We believed we could do it but we haven’t and that is my responsibility. I am so sad because we wanted to find a way to do it. We fell short and I apologise because it’s my job and it’s my responsibility and I have to analyse this.”
Despite Arsenal’s remarkable achievement of finishing in second place, the statistics surrounding their failure to secure their first title in 19 years are quite distressing.
They held the lead for an astonishing 93 percent of the season, setting a new record in the top-flight for the longest duration a team has been at the top without winning the title. Interestingly, this surpasses their own previous record set during the 2002/03 season under Arsene Wenger, where they led for 71 percent of the season before being overtaken by Manchester United.
However, it is worth noting that Arsenal famously responded to that collapse by going on to achieve their historic “invincible” campaign in the 2003/04 season, becoming Premier League champions without losing a single game. This remarkable feat has not been replicated even by Manchester City, who have won three consecutive titles.
It is uncertain whether Mikel Arteta’s current team will be capable of responding in the same manner as Wenger’s “invincibles.” However, the Spanish manager will undoubtedly need to address the collapse that occurred. In early April, Arsenal managed to regain an eight-point lead at the top of the table with a convincing 4-1 victory over Leeds United at home.
Unfortunately, their fortunes took a turn for the worse in their subsequent match against Liverpool. Despite being ahead 2-0, Arsenal conceded and had to settle for a thrilling draw. This scenario repeated itself a week later when they drew against West Ham, followed by dropping more points at home against bottom-placed Southampton.
The situation truly shifted when they suffered a heavy 4-1 defeat at the hands of Manchester City. However, they managed to secure victories over Chelsea and Newcastle, which temporarily seemed to stabilize their performance. Nevertheless, the recent disappointing 0-3 loss to Brighton, along with the defeat to Nottingham Forest, has resulted in a despondent finish to a season that had initially promised much for Arsenal.
Arsenal break own unwanted record after latest collapse hands title to Man City