Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has listed two explanations for his team’s drop in performances after they were defeated by Aston Villa and Bayern Munich in consecutive matches.
Two back-to-back losses have jeopardized Arsenal’s season, dashing their hopes for Champions League success cruelly ended by Bayern on Wednesday.
Losing to Villa could lead to Arsenal losing the Premier League title, as Arteta’s team is now two points behind leaders Manchester City with only six matches left.
Arteta has stated Arsenal are completely focused on the top-flight title race before their match against Wolves on Saturday and has now clarified why performances have declined.
Asked if their decline in the second half of games was due to the fixture calendar, Arteta instead blamed himself as well as the quality of their opponents.
‘At times it’s the opponent,’ Arteta said on Friday. ‘The opponent’s play very well and you have to congratulate them.
‘At times it will be my fault as well, not changing anything or making the right decision.
‘Sometimes the players don’t have that spark. But what would have happened if we scored two, three or four goals in the first half against Aston Villa or two or three against Bayern like we did before.
‘Who knows? In the end, the game-state is so important in football. You have to recognize that. You can’t just isolate a moment to make an evaluation. It’s too simplistic.’
Arteta has only achieved one FA Cup and two Community Shields since he became Arsenal manager in 2019 and has been asked to review his five-year tenure.
‘It’s been a very intense journey,’ Arteta added. ‘When you are near the top and you’re fighting at such a level you know you’re going to do that.
‘This job, this industry is constantly testing your resilience and your ego. When things are going well and when they’re not going well.
‘All the time you have to navigate and go through that in a natural way and understand the context. And go through the positives, that’s really important to help learn and look forward.’
