Mikel Arteta was left furious with his Arsenal side as they "lost purpose" after being pegged back by West Ham in another devastating blow to their title hopes.
Gabriel Jesus and Martin Odegaard had put the Gunners side in control at the London Stadium after a scintillating opening ten minutes. Strikes from Said Benrahma and Jarrod Bowen saw the visitors buckle though as they struggled to match the heights of their brilliant start.
The Gunners have now let two two-goal leads slip in as many games following last weekend's draw with Liverpool and Arteta was left particularly angry with how his side took their eye off of the ball against West Ham. Speaking after the full-time whistle, the Spaniard said: "Very disappointing.
"The way we started was superb again, we were in total control, then we lost purpose. We gave them hope, conceded a terrible penalty, then credit to them.
"We got on the roller coaster where everything is going, corners and throw ins, and we never got away from that. The purpose we needed for third and fourth goal, I didn't see it."
Ahead of the Bowen's equaliser, Arsenal had a huge chance to make it a more comfortable afternoon but Bukayo Saka could not find the net from the penalty spot. A successful spot-kick could have put the game beyond any doubt but Arteta has refused to put any blame at the academy graduate's door.
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"A player who takes penalties misses penalties, I don't know anyone who hasn't," he added.
The Gunners still sit top of the Premier League with a four point buffer - albeit the momentum now lies with the reigning champions Manchester City following their 3-1 victory over Leicester on Saturday. Asked about how the complexion of the race for the title has changed, Arteta has suggested that there is no added pressure despite there only being seven matches of the campaign remaining.
Arteta said: "It's [the title race] the same, I don't know how many notches there were a few months ago. We can't control it."
After taking just two points from their last two matches, Arteta will be hopeful of his side getting back on track in their next Premier League outing. The Gunners take on relegation-threatened Southampton on Friday evening at the Emirates Stadium.
In the meantime, Man City are not back in Premier League action for a short while. They take on Bayern Munich in the second-leg of their Champions League quarter-final in midweek before a clash with Sheffield United in the FA Cup semi-final next weekend.
Their next Premier League action is their clash with Arsenal in ten days' time - a game that looks pivotal to the title race.
