As the final whistle blew in Saturday’s home draw with Everton, there were a smattering of boos from the crowd. This should have been an easy three points, a chance to gain ground on a Liverpool side who also dropped points.
There is currently a lot of ‘should’ about Arsenal, particularly when it comes to struggling against teams in the bottom half of the table. On a basic level, the Gunners should be beating these sides because of the quality of the squad and the type of football they are capable of playing.
But the word ‘should’ also has another meaning here. If Arsenal are to win the title, they ‘should’ be beating teams like Everton at home. There is an underlying sense of entitlement, that results against the smaller teams are a given, and it is the big games where Arsenal need to focus. This is a dangerous mentality to have.
It is worth remembering that this is only really the second season where Arsenal can be considered title contenders. The sense that they ‘should’ be beating teams simply by turning up is not the approach befitting of champions.
What Arsenal do not seem to have learned is that to be title contenders is to be hunted. It is to be targeted, It is to be subjected to low blocks and defensive football in an attempt to simply stop them, whatever it takes. On Saturday, the Gunners had 13 shots and 76% possession, and still dropped two points.
Coming so close to the title in the past two seasons has perhaps given fans the idea a few tweaks here and there are what is needed to get over the line. But, when the margins are that small in elite sport, a one percent improvement does not represent a couple of tweaks. It could be having to go right back to the drawing board and going again.
The draw against Everton is not the end of Arsenal’s title challenge, but it has certainly planted a seed of doubt.
Could it be that the current squad, and current performance, is only ever going to be good enough to be one percent away from the title?
Find more from Laura Kirk-Francis at the Latte Firm podcast
