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Mikel Arteta No problem before arsenal team leader Patrick Vieira Questioning his team’s mental strength Premier League Manchester United’s title hopes have been dealt a huge blow.
The 3-2 defeat at the Emirates Stadium was the Gunners’ third consecutive game without a win in the league and means their lead at the top of the table has been reduced to four points after a damaging weekend in which Manchester City and Aston Villa both won.
Arsenal looked on the verge of victory after taking the lead through Lisandro Martinez’s own goal in the 29th minute, but the pressure seemed to be getting to them thereafter.
Martin Zubimendi’s horrific error set up Brian Mbemo’s equalizer just before half-time, before Patrick Dolgu fired a stunning shot from under the crossbar to give United the lead.
Mikel Merino came off the bench to equalize on the goal line and the game seemed won.
But Arsenal failed again, with Matheus Cunha scoring a superb long-range winner, after which Sky Sports commentator and three-time champion Vieira said there was “a problem with the team’s mental strength”.
Asked about his response, Arteta said: “That’s fine. We accept every opinion, no matter where it comes from. They have the right reasons to say that.
“Finally, we have to show our mental strength on the pitch on match day.”
The extent to which the game changed after Zubimendi’s mistake was particularly shocking for Arteta.
There appeared to be little pressure on the midfielder when he turned and inexplicably steered the ball past his own goal and straight to the feet of Mbeumo, who confidently rounded David Raya for his ninth goal of the season.
“I thought we started the game very well, we were very dominant in the first half hour,” Arteta said. “Then we gave them a goal.
“Mistakes are part of football and very different to us but we gave them goals and hope and it changed the energy because from half-time we worked really hard especially to keep the ball in the right areas.
“They had two great goals in the second half, some individual quality and magic moments. I thought we managed to shift the energy and get the second goal and you could feel everything changed. The game was ready to win.”
Manchester United interim manager Michael Carrick He has now won his first two games in charge following last Saturday’s victory over Manchester City at Old Trafford.
“I just think we understand the flow of the game,” he said. “Sometimes we feel a little bit against it and hold on. We also want to try and control.
“In these important games, away from home, you have to take some control and calm things down. I think we’ve done enough to adapt to the game.
“These were fantastic goals, some good football but at certain times we looked dangerous. Other times you have to defend. It was an all-encompassing performance.”