Should Arteta be concerned about the Premier League title chances?

The 0-0 stalemate with Nottingham Forest helped Arsenal widen the gap to Man City to 7 points. Yet, they actually lost the opportunity to push the lead to 9 points. Luckily, their opponents are struggling. Still, 16 rounds remain ahead.

Arteta states that no one can keep winning forever

Mikel Arteta believes that Arsenal should appreciate the point gained from the 0-0 draw with Nottingham Forest instead of regretting the two points dropped. After the match, Arsenal’s coach spoke frankly with TNT Sports as follows: "We have to do that. Try to learn and improve. This league shows how tough it is. No one can just keep winning, winning, and winning forever. That’s very difficult. Especially in situations like today, we should have finished the opponent off, but credit must be given to them."

This match was the third away game in a sequence of four away matches within just 10 days, sandwiched between the first leg of the Carabao Cup semifinal at Chelsea midweek and the upcoming trip to Inter Milan in the Champions League next Wednesday. Therefore, Arteta fully understands that the points earned in this grueling period are very valuable even though every club wants to win:"Ultimately, this is another small step and the schedule is really, really tight. We arrived here just two and a half days before facing Chelsea in the semifinal, both teams gave their all. We have another game in three days against Inter Milan, then Man United, so let's reflect on today and tomorrow we will keep fighting."

Of course, Arsenal missed the chance to extend their lead to 9 points at the top after Man City lost to Man United, which is undeniable. Overall, the 1 point Arsenal earned against Nottingham is reasonable because playing a club in a "fight for survival" mindset is never easy. As former Liverpool midfielder Gerrard emphasized, the real issue behind Arsenal dropping points lies in the finishing ability of their attackers: "That wasn’t the reason they didn’t get all three points today (referring to a handball incident inside the box that the referee ignored). The reason is Arsenal wasted too many chances in the first half and the opposing goalkeeper made world-class saves."

Gerrard also highlighted Gabriel Martinelli’s missed opportunity as a clear example of Arsenal’s lack of a killer instinct. Additionally, the indecision of Martin Zubimendi and Mikel Merino’s missed header in the 71st minute only added to the "Gunners" fans’ frustration. According to Gerrard, if Arsenal had scored, Forest would have been forced to abandon their defensive style, opening up more spaces in the game.

Gyokeres's isolation on the pitch

Another match, Gyokeres was expected to help Arsenal but he failed to score while the team was struggling to find goals. Starting as the highest forward, the Swedish striker was on the pitch for 57 minutes before being substituted by Gabriel Jesus. During nearly an hour, Gyokeres touched the ball only 10 times. On average, he got the ball roughly every 6 minutes. To compare, sometimes a goalkeeper participates more in the game. This shows how lonely Gyokeres was or rather how perfectly Nottingham’s defenders marked him.

Even worse, his presence inside the opponent’s penalty area was almost nonexistent, with just 2 touches in this critical zone. His expected goals (xG) statistic was a mere 0.1, perfectly reflecting the deadlock: Gyokeres hardly posed any real threat to Forest’s goal. Moreover, he failed at other fundamental striker duties such as hold-up play, physical shielding, and aerial duels. Although Gyokeres has an ideal physique, his performance was surprisingly weak.

Data shows Gyokeres lost 100% of his one-on-one duels. He failed both ground challenges and all five aerial battles. Against Forest’s defense, he was isolated, lacked space, time, and was completely outmuscled. When the target striker cannot hold the ball, all of Arsenal’s attacking options become ineffective.

The final factor contributing to Arsenal’s draw was coach Mikel Arteta’s personnel choices. The absence of several key players and the decision to bench Bukayo Saka and Leandro Trossard in the first half reduced the wing’s dynamism. Speaking to TNT Sports, Arteta explained the reasoning: "Bukayo has played a lot recently and had a minor issue before the match. We need to manage players' fitness. Arsenal has other great players who can provide different tactical options for the team."

When introduced, Bukayo Saka indeed brought fresh energy to Arsenal’s attack. He had the best chance with a sharp header, but the brilliance of goalkeeper Matz Sels denied a certain goal, forcing Arsenal to settle for a point at City Ground.

On the field, Arsenal clearly struggled against the deep-lying defense of the hosts. This is not the style that big clubs like Arsenal want to face, but it is the approach lower-ranked teams adopt against Arsenal, and Arteta needs to plan accordingly. In a context where Arsenal dropped points (but did not lose) while direct rivals like Man City lost, things are not too bad. This phase isn’t the final sprint yet, but clearly, when energy must be spread so thin, one point is better than a defeat. In any case, everything remains within Arsenal’s calculations.