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Arsenal’s hopes for the Premier League title were dealt another blow with their loss at Fulham, causing Mikel Arteta to express his sorrow for what he called a “painful and sad” day.
The Gunners have dropped to fourth place in the standings due to a 2-1 defeat at Craven Cottage, following a previous loss at home to West Ham on Thursday.
Bukayo Saka scored first for the away team in west London, but Raul Jimenez and Bobby Decordova-Reid came back to win the game for the Cottagers.
Arsenal were leading by six points over Manchester City five games ago, but now they are tied in points. This is because Arsenal played one extra game due to Manchester City’s involvement in the World Club Cup before Christmas.
When asked about the game, Arteta described it as a painful and sad day. That is the best way to sum it up.
“We had the opportunity to be in first place after playing 20 games due to our consistent performance. However, we did not perform well enough to deserve a win in the game.”
Three days prior, our team suffered a loss that we should have won. However, today’s game was a completely different experience.
“We were defeated in a game three days ago that we truly deserved to win. However, today’s outcome was completely different.”
The Arsenal team made 30 attempts at scoring, but ended up losing 2-0 to West Ham. However, in this match, things were different as Arteta’s team struggled to create opportunities on a rainy and windy afternoon by the river Thames.
When asked about the Fulham performance, the Spaniard responded with a definite “yes.”
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“The first instance, we failed to score a goal while they managed to score in their own unique way. That’s fine. However, today’s overall performance is cause for concern.”
“We didn’t perform at our best. Our ball possession was lacking and we gave away too many possessions. Our rhythm and attacking threat were also lacking.”
“Our defense was not strong enough. We were unable to contain their direct approach. They had a clear advantage in winning the first and second balls, giving them opportunities to make runs.”
“We ended up allowing two goals, similar to what happened against West Ham. In this league, doing so makes it extremely challenging to secure a win.”
Fulham’s manager, Marco Silva, celebrated a successful 2023 as his team bounced back from a three-game losing streak in the league.
Silva was satisfied with his team’s performance as Fulham came from behind to secure a Premier League victory for the first time in more than a year.
“It’s definitely the best way to end 2023,” he stated.
“Our ambition was to finish on a high and react from the last two games. I really believe we deserve it. Over the 95 minutes we deserved it more.
“We had a strong response after scoring the first goal. We were able to overcome their pressure and start playing according to our style. We even had opportunities to score a third goal.”
Source: independent.co.uk
