Mikel Arteta admits Arsenal must “continue to believe” they can still win the Premier League for the first time since 2004 after their 2-0 defeat to Aston Villa left Manchester City in the title race took the initiative.
A late strike from substitute Leon Bailey and Ollie Watkins’ 19th league goal of the season handed Arsenal their fifth defeat of the season. It means Arsenal miss out on a chance to return to the top of the table, as Sunday’s rivals Liverpool also lost against Crystal Palace.
But following last season’s defeat to Manchester City, Arteta admitted their fortunes were out of control again after setting the tempo for much of the campaign. “This is the reality now. We knew this moment could come and all we have to do now is react and continue to believe,” he said.
“Our performance in the first half was one of our best performances so far this season against a very good team. It should have been three or four goals but it didn’t happen and the momentum changed in the second half and we conceded Two very bad goals. It’s a big test for us now to step up and make a difference as a leader.
Arsenal had conceded just four goals in their previous 11 Premier League games, but a lax defense allowed Bailey to score late on, before Watkins’ superb finish added to their misery.
Arteta, who also scored two goals for Bayern Munich in the Champions League quarter-final first leg on Tuesday, revealed that Martin Odegaard was unable to continue with an unexplained knock and said his The team must improve against the German champions.
“The players are frustrated and sad,” he said. “But we have a fantastic opportunity to reach the Champions League semi-finals, which has never happened for the club in 14 years. It couldn’t have come at the right time.
Villa now find themselves three points ahead of Spurs in fourth place, having completed a double over Arsenal after beating them in December.
Newsletter Promotion Post
“I’m very happy,” said Unai Emery, who insisted beating his former employer was no more important to him than any other victory. “As a coach it’s a big thing to come here – it’s very difficult to beat Arsenal. For me it’s the same three points we got against Brentford last week .
