Whether in the race for the top four or the title, Arteta has often emphasised the importance of small gaps. Nowhere is this more evident than in the Premier League title race between Arsenal and Manchester City this season.
Arsenal were hoping that arch-rivals Tottenham could hold Manchester City back on Tuesday, but we should not see it as a fateful game.
With 38 rounds of fixtures in every Premier League season, Mikel Arteta and his players have always felt they need to do their job' rather than worry about anything else. They have managed to do so for most of the season, especially in 2024. Since losing to Fulham at the end of last year, Arsenal have dropped just two points – a 0-0 draw with Manchester City and a 2-0 defeat to Aston Villa – breaking the record for attacking and defensive.
Their performance over the past four months has been unprecedented by Arsenal's standards, but reflection is a necessary part of improvement. Just days after Arsenal's 4-1 defeat to Manchester City last season, Arteta said: "We don't want to accept that result, but you have to recognise that on that day, when they took the game to a different level, we didn't get to that level. ”
"Acknowledging", but not "accepting", this is the key point. Arsenal have improved again this season and are still in contention for the title before the final round, but they will have to admit they have shortcomings – most of which have come in the first half of the season.
Their match against Fulham was the epitome of this period for different reasons.
The August encounter at the Emirates Stadium began with an unforced error, with Bukayo Saka returning the salute from midfield and Andreas Pereira slotting home with ease. It was the third time in 2023 that Arsenal conceded in the opening 60 seconds. In the second half, Mikel Arteta's side scored twice in a row to seal victory, but then Palhinha missed a corner and took the opportunity to score 2-2.
In the rematch at Craven Cottage, Arsenal took the lead from the start, but did not realise the danger and wasted the chance to win. Fulham were able to equalise because Arsenal made another old mistake. Before and after Reid's winning goal in the 59th minute, Arsenal failed to change the situation on the pitch and failed to create a "sufficient threat".
These unforced errors and passivity took Arsenal a price to pay in a number of games during that period. They have conceded the third-most goals in the Premier League this season (seven), with five of their previous 19 games.
In addition to the 2-2 draw at home to Fulham, they also made mistakes in the 2-2 draw at home to Tottenham, with Jorginho slotted home less than a minute after Bukayo Saka took the lead for Arsenal. Arsenal then drew away at Chelsea, with David Raya standing too far up and half-lobbed home from Mykhailo Mudryk's half-cross. In those 3 games, Arsenal have conceded 6 points, with undeserved goals conceded in each of those games.
As winter approaches, Arsenal's passivity has become even more apparent. Newcastle's home win over Arsenal last November had much of the post-game discussion focused on VAR, but on that attack, Arsenal shouldn't have allowed Willock to pass the ball so easily.
In the 0-1 defeat at Villa Park in December last year, Arsenal paid a heavy price in the opening stages due to poor back-up and poor marking, and also in December against West Ham United, Arsenal made a series of mistakes and eventually lost 2-0.
Exhaustion may have been a reason at the time, with many players playing three games a week (both Champions League and domestic competitions), which made the winter break in January so important.
In any case, these are the moments when Arsenal have stumbled this season. This means that going into 2024, they have little room for error.
In the first half of the 20 league rounds, they swallowed 4 draws and 4 losses. In the next 17 rounds of the year, they have drawn and lost just one. At the start of the year, Manchester City and Arsenal were level on points, but with one game less. Since then, City have won the same games as Arsenal, drawing with Chelsea, Liverpool and Arsenal, but still winning more points (Arsenal have 46 points from 17 games compared to Manchester City's 48 from 18 games).
Manchester City have not been perfect throughout the season, which is why Arsenal are still likely to win the title before the final round. Manchester City have also struggled in the winter, with a four-game winless run in the league, and if they fail to win against West Ham tonight, they may look back on that period.
For Arsenal, the goal this season is to prove that last year's title race was not a matter of luck and that they have what it takes. Arsenal have done that this year, but as Arteta has done every season in charge of Arsenal, there is still room for improvement.
In the second half of the season, they have already shown that they can reach a higher level – a hopeful sign even if their results are not as good as they could be.