This may still be a triumphant Arsenal season, just not in the way one might have expected back in August.
The Gunners have trophy ambitions heading into May, albeit in the Champions League rather than the Premier League.
History beckons for Arsenal in Europe, but regardless of whether they lift the trophy in Munich, Mikel Arteta will expect his side to launch a stronger domestic challenge next season after slipping behind Liverpool.
Arne Slot’s leaders will be crowned champions with four games to spare on Sunday, so long as they avoid defeat against Tottenham at Anfield.
Having taken the title race to the penultimate weekend of the campaign in 2022-23 and the final day in 2023-24, Arsenal have not run the Reds as close as they would have liked, despite only losing three games all season.
Here are the key moments that derailed Arsenal’s title bid.
Rice sees red
Declan Rice can't believe it as he's sent off for kicking the ball away
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Call it misfortune, call it ill discipline, call it a refereeing conspiracy (if you really must). The fact is Arsenal have had far too many red cards; their total of five is more than any other Premier League side.
Declan Rice was the first to be sent for an early bath, setting the tone for what was to come. Rice was dismissed for nudging the ball away from a Brighton free-kick in Arsenal’s third game, receiving a whack from Joel Veltman for his troubles.
It was a contentious call, and others followed. Leandro Trossard was dismissed for the same reason at the Etihad, while Myles Lewis-Skelly had a straight red at Molineux rescinded.
The Gunners can ill-afford a repeat next season after taking just five points from a possible 15 in games when they had a player sent off.
In an era when teams generally need 90+ points to win the title, challengers can ill afford the type of slow start that Arsenal did.
A 1-1 draw against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in November was hardly a disastrous result, but it extended Arsenal’s winless league run to four matches.
It also meant that Arsenal won just five of their opening 11 games, enabling Liverpool to open up a nine-point headstart by mid-November that they never looked likely to concede.
Saka’s injury at Selhurst
Bukayo Saka missed over three months of football due to a hamstring injury (Photo: Getty)Long-term injuries to key players have been a theme of Arsenal’s season. Such is his importance, Bukayo Saka’s hamstring tear at Selhurst Park just before Christmas was the most debilitating.
Saka was absent for over three months and Arsenal missed him, winning 10 of 19 games during his spell on the sidelines.
The Gunners dropped points against Brighton, Aston Villa, West Ham, Nottingham Forest and Manchester United during Saka’s time out and also crashed out of both domestic cups.
Saka’s injury was compounded by Gabriel Jesus tearing his ACL during the FA Cup defeat to Manchester United in mid-January, just as the Brazilian was starting to rediscover his goalscoring form.
Arsenal had 22 days to bring in attacking reinforcements during the winter transfer window after Jesus’s setback, but surprisingly failed to do so, preferring to keep their powder dry for the summer instead.
It backfired almost immediately when both Gabriel Martinelli and Kai Havertz suffered hamstring injuries within a week of the window closing, leaving Arteta scrabbling around internally for replacements.
Impressively as Mikel Merino has performed as a makeshift striker, a new No 9 will be top of new sporting director Andrea Berta’s summer shopping list.
A Bowen arrow
A 15-game unbeaten run from 10 November to 15 February ensured that Arsenal were still clinging onto Liverpool’s coattails, with a seven-point gap between the sides far from insurmountable with 13 games left.
An inexplicable 1-0 home defeat to West Ham courtesy of Jarrod Bowen’s goal, coupled with Liverpool’s victory away at Manchester City the same weekend, extended the gap to 10 and gave Arsenal a mountain to climb.
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“That was nowhere near the levels that we have to hit to have the opportunity to win a Premier League,” Arteta said.
It was a bad one, given how poorly the Hammers have played this season. Graham Potter’s side have won just two of their last 12 fixtures, including that smash and grab at the Emirates.
Penalty woe at Goodison
Arsenal’s title hopes had been practically extinguished by the time they headed to Goodison Park for the final time at the start of April. After a 1-1 draw, it was well and truly over.
Arteta felt aggrieved at the manner of that outcome after Lewis-Skelly was deemed to have pulled back Jack Harrison in the penalty area. Iliman Ndiaye converted the spot-kick to earn a share of the spoils.
“I’ve seen it 15 times, there’s no way, in my opinion, that’s a penalty,” complained Arteta after the game.
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