Arteta's Arsenal Conundrum: Can He Overcome the 'Bottling' Trend?

The Premier League title race has produced numerous iconic moments over the years, including Steven Gerrard's infamous slip and Kevin Keegan's despair at Anfield. A recent incident involving a Manchester City fan drinking from an Arsenal bottle in the Stamford Bridge away end has sparked debate about the momentum of the title race. With City six points behind, their fans are already mocking Arsenal, hinting at a sense of ominousness in the title race. History seems to be repeating itself, as this is the time of the season when Manchester City typically hits top gear, while Arsenal tends to struggle. Under Mikel Arteta, Arsenal's win percentage drops below 50% in April, and they have not won a game in this month for five years. Arsenal are on the verge of freezing in the face of being champions, having suffered three defeats in their first 49 games, only to double their losses in the last four games. The question remains: what is behind Arsenal's recent slump, and how can Arteta stop the rot? One possible explanation lies in the tactical element of the game. Arsenal's players passed the ball back to David Raya 38 times during the 95 minutes against Bournemouth, struggling with the opposition's press. Andoni Iraola's four-man press lined up against Arsenal, shutting off the middle of the pitch and forcing them to play out to the centre-backs or go long, both of which give the opposition a chance to win the ball back. As a result, Bournemouth's two goals came from Arsenal mistakes. Arteta has had weeks to overcome this tactical problem but has yet to find a solution. The pressure is now on, with a reunion with Pep Guardiola's City looming on Sunday. Arteta's tactical astuteness is being questioned, and he needs to change the narrative quickly. Guardiola, on the other hand, has turned Nico O'Reilly into a goalscoring machine, a feat he also achieved with Josko Gvardiol two seasons ago. Arteta's reliance on set pieces for attacking play is also a concern, with an open play xG of 0.19 against Bournemouth. Furthermore, there are doubts about how Arteta has managed his squad, particularly with regards to Martin Zubimendi, who looks exhausted after playing more minutes than any other Arsenal outfield player this season. The Spanish midfielder has played 3,751 minutes, over 100 minutes more than the next best in Declan Rice. Christian Norgaard, on the other hand, has played just 995 minutes this term and is yet to start a Premier League game for Arsenal all season. Could Arteta have rotated his key midfielders more? Rice's load has been put under strain due to an injury to his back-up in Mikel Merino. Arsenal's midfield has been overloaded with minutes, and now it's also being overloaded with pressing opposition. However, there may be a deeper issue at play. As Guardiola noted, 'it is the mindset, not the tactics.' A worrying trend has emerged regarding Arteta, where he gives rallying cries to his supporters before big games, only for his team to underperform. Before the game against Bournemouth, Arteta urged his supporters to get up early and be ready for the match, but his team did not turn up. They failed to score a goal from open play, and the 'big day' Arteta asked for did not arrive. Arteta's justification for such outbursts may be honest and innocent, but it adds to the noise and tension surrounding the team. Gary Neville noted that Arsenal's players are not tired because they don't want to win, but because they want it too much, and their legs have started to get heavy. The expectation and emotion surrounding the club are taking a toll on the players. Arteta's restless and jittery nature extended to his team during the defeat to Bournemouth, where he made a triple substitution in the 53rd minute. Perhaps a calmer head would have kept one of the pacey Noni Madueke and Gabriel Martinelli on the pitch, given Bournemouth's high line. When Arsenal don't win or perform to their potential, Arteta's rallying cry comes across as hypocritical. How Arteta fixes Arsenal's current predicament is both in and out of his control. The tactical tweaks needed to overcome City are evident, but they also depend on players returning from injury. Against Bournemouth, Arsenal were without Jurrien Timber, Bukayo Saka, Riccardo Calafiori, and Martin Odegaard, with Eberechi Eze and Piero Hincapie only fit enough for the bench. At least four of them are guaranteed starters and bring clarity in situations such as building play out the back, which Arsenal are struggling with. It further raises the point that Arsenal are in a very good situation given their injury predicament. Before the March international break, no Premier League team suffered more injuries this season than the Gunners. If you look at the eight most injury-hit teams, the vast majority of them are underachieving, with Arsenal, Leeds, and Aston Villa being the exceptions. While Arsenal's last four matches have seen standards slip, Arteta's side must remember what has brought them into the position they are in for most of the season. The form going into the Man City match has not defined Arsenal's entire season up until now, but the game on Sunday will be crucial in determining their fate.