FROM ANFIELD LOSS TO TABLE TOPPERS: THE INCREDIBLE RISE OF MIKEL ARTETA’S GUNNERS
Arsenal looks to extend its lead to 8 points against a struggling Liverpool side. We analyse Arteta’s tactics and the title race.
_1767877878.webp)
Gunners can move eight points clear and take a big step towards the title.
After Arsenal lost at Anfield back in August, the usual crowd of pundits didn’t hold back. The season had just started, but the game already felt loaded—a chance for Liverpool, who’d splashed the cash all summer, to flex their muscles. For Arsenal, it was supposed to be a shot at proving things were different this time.
Didn’t go that way. Szoboszlai curled in a late free kick, Liverpool won 1-0, and honestly, there was barely anything to get excited about. Arsenal managed just one shot on target.
Gary Neville said Arsenal looked like they were “happy not to lose.” Carragher claimed nothing had changed. Peter Schmeichel called their football “ugly.” Liverpool pulled three points clear, and, at that moment, it felt like the old story for Arsenal.
But fast forward 17 games, and the script’s flipped. Arsenal have swung the gap by 17 points and now sit top of the table. The city’s third straight draw on Wednesday cracked the door wide open, and now Arsenal can push eight points clear.
Even months later, you can tell Mikel Arteta hasn’t forgotten the noise after that Anfield defeat. At his press conference this week, he looked a bit exasperated. “People are entitled to their opinions; mine was different, but that’s the beauty of football,” he said. When pressed, he just repeated, “Very different.”
Later, he opened up a bit more. He talked about how people always second-guess the line-up choices, especially when things go wrong. “We know. We know their physical state, probably more, because nobody asked me. Are the other players available to start? Nobody asked. People assume that.
“We have all the information. You guys don’t, and it’s normal, and we don’t want to provide that either. So normally, with the information that you have, you have to make the judgment that, in your opinion, was the best case to win the game. That has to be accepted.”
This time, Arteta and Arsenal don’t want to leave any room for debate. The injury worries have eased, and this is a fierce squad, especially up front. Eberechi Eze hasn’t even gotten on the pitch in the last four games.
The Gunners have taken maximum points from a tough festive stretch and now welcome a Liverpool team that’s stumbling and short on confidence.
Arsenal showed just recently what they’re capable of when they’re out for payback. After losing late at Villa Park, they came home and thrashed Aston Villa 4-1, one of their best performances of the season. You can bet Arteta’s using the sting from Anfield—and all the chatter that followed—as fuel tonight.
At one point, Arsenal’s six-point lead at the top was their biggest ever after 20 Premier League games. Now’s the moment to make it eight, put Liverpool away, and show everyone they mean business in this title race.
WHY GYOKERES BELIEVES SALIBA AND GABRIEL ARE FOOTBALL'S BEST CENTER-BACK DUO
Viktor Gyokeres praises Arsenal's Saliba and Gabriel as the best defensive duo before the Champions League semi-final vs Atletico.
Viktor Gyokeres doesn’t hide how lucky he feels training with Gabriel and William Saliba. For him, this is as good as it gets for a centre-back pairing. “Honestly, I don’t think you can find better centre-backs than what we have,” he said. “Training against them, playing with them, I'm blessed, really.”
David Raya’s about to snatch another Golden Glove, thanks in no small part to the guys right in front of him. Seventeen clean sheets in the Premier League don’t come easy, and it’s Gabriel and Saliba who keep things solid at the back. They’ve become one of the best partnerships you’ll see anywhere, and Arsenal’s banking on them to help push for just their second Champions League final ever.
Next up, Arsenal face Atletico Madrid at home on Tuesday night, the second leg of the semi-final, after drawing 1-1 in Spain last week.
Gyokeres is hitting his stride, too. After his two goals against Fulham on Saturday, he’s up to 21 for the season. The Swede’s different since the new year rolled in. 14 of those goals came in 2026, and you can tell he’s getting more comfortable in an Arsenal shirt with every match. “You get to know everyone, you settle into life, and the routines – just everything – about changing clubs,” he said. “The more you play together, game after game, the easier it gets.”
There’s something else: Gyokeres has scored his last 27 penalties, including the one that buried Fulham. That coolness from the spot might come in handy if things are still locked after 120 minutes on Tuesday. So, what goes through his head when lining up for a penalty? “Don’t try to think too much. Just put it in the back of the net,” Gyokeres said. That’s pretty much it.
When someone asked if Arsenal had spent extra time practising penalties ahead of the big game, Gyokeres just smiled and said, “No comment.”
TITLE RACE MATH: WHY ARSENAL’S SIX-POINT LEAD CHANGES THE PRESSURE ON MAN CITY
Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal rediscovered their flowing football in a dominant win over Fulham, putting immense pressure on Manchester City.
Arsenal finally looked like themselves again, brushing past Fulham with the kind of confident, flowing football they showed earlier in the season, not the sluggish stuff fans have sat through lately.
Right from kickoff, they flew at Fulham and pretty much had the game wrapped up in the first half. That win nudges them six points ahead of Man City, though City has two games in hand. With just three matches left, every point feels golden. City heads to Everton on Monday for the first of those crucial fixtures.
This wasn’t just a win; it was a real confidence boost. Perfect timing, too, with the Champions League semi-final against Atletico Madrid just around the corner. You could see Arsenal were sharp right from the start. No signs of tired legs after that trip to Madrid. Myles Lewis-Skelly looked thrilled to finally get a start, and Trossard wasted no time getting involved, nearly scoring early on.
It didn’t take long for Arsenal to get the opener. Less than 10 minutes in, Saka, who wore the armband, danced past Jimenez (who slipped) and squared the ball for Gyokeres. An easy tap-in, his twentieth goal of the season. Not a bad haul for his debut year, especially considering how much criticism he’s taken.
Funny enough, the goal came at almost the same time as last week’s against Newcastle. But this time, Arsenal wanted to avoid the nerve-shredding finish they had then. They looked determined to put Fulham away early.
Fulham hardly touched the ball in that first half. Lukic picked up a yellow for hacking down Eze; it summed up Fulham’s frustration. They’ve never found much luck at Arsenal, and today continued that streak. Their fans barely had moments to cheer.
Leno spilt a cross at one point but managed to block Gyokeres’ follow-up. Saka blasted the rebound wide with the goal gaping, then Trossard floated a beauty to Calafiori at the back post, but the header was ruled out for offside.
Arsenal’s attacking play finally paid off again. Eze slipped a perfect ball through to Gyokeres, who held it up and teed up Saka, bursting into the box and finishing low into the corner.
Their confidence kept growing. Calafiori, charging forward again, set up Eze for a shot that bent just wide. Arsenal didn’t want the half to end, and with good reason. Just before the whistle, Trossard whipped in a great cross, and Gyokeres headed home for his second. Arsenal went into halftime cruising.
Arteta could actually afford to give Saka a rest, taking him off at the break to save his legs for Tuesday. Rice also got a breather soon after.
Fulham did show a little more bite after halftime. Jimenez hit one just over, and Castagne twice came close from a corner and then with a quick shot after the ball dropped to him at the edge of the box.
Arsenal could’ve pushed for more goals to boost their goal difference, but they opted to see the game out sensibly. Still, they nearly made it four when Calafiori’s header bounced off Leno’s head and onto the bar.
And then there was Max Dowman, who went on a mazy run from halfway; weaving through defenders, if that shot had found the net, people would be talking about it for years.
In the end, it was just the performance Arsenal needed: sharp, confident, and a reminder of what they’re capable of.
_1776690554.webp)