Arsenal suffered just their second defeat of the season last night as PSV Eindhoven remain in contention to finish ahead of the Gunners in their Europa League group.
Granit Xhaka may have been one of the standout performers for Mikel Arteta's side this term but he stood out for all the wrong reasons against PSV as he picked up a silly booking that will see him be suspended for the final group match against FC Zurich. The Swiss midfielder scored the crucial goal to secure qualification from Group A in the 1-0 win over PSV at the Emirates Stadium, but he was unable to have a similar impact in Holland.
Aaron Ramsdale's costly error for Luuk de Jong's goal sealed all three points for the Dutch outfit, but the English goalkeeper has refused to accept the defeat at a 'reality check'. Arsenal were unable to bounce back from their disappointing 1-1 draw against Southampton at the weekend and now turn their focus to the clash against Nottingham Forest at the weekend.
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Following the 2-0 defeat to PSV, football.london takes a look at how the national media reacted to the Gunners' second defeat of the season so far.
There have been warning signs that legs were becoming heavy and bodies had begun to ache. There have been matches recently when second halves have become an exercise in survival. Here in Holland, however, Arsenal did not so much fade after the break. They collapsed.
And the brutal truth? They had already ridden their luck by then and, in the end, they were fortunate to escape with only a two-goal beating. Five times PSV Eindhoven had the ball in Aaron Ramsdale’s net. Twice Arsenal were rescued by the assistant referee. Once they had VAR to thank over another close offside call. Eventually, though, escape routes dried up and PSV secured a victory which makes Group A interesting once more.
Arsenal needed only a draw here to take top spot with a game to spare. Now they may need to beat Zurich next week to avoid a playoff against a Champions League dropout. Another couple of games they could do without. Mikel Arteta’s side were still on track at half time, after Cody Gakpo and the exceptional Xavi Simons had seen goals ruled out.
Arsenal slumped to only their second defeat of the season as they were outclassed by PSV Eindhoven in their penultimate Europa League group game. Joey Veerman and Luuk de Jong both netted in a dominant second-half display from the hosts - the Dutch side also having three goals ruled out for offside offences.
Whilst Arsenal have already guaranteed that they will be progressing from the group, there is still the possibility of an extremely difficult play-off in which to reach the next round.
The side that finishes second - which could still be the Gunners or PSV - will go into a two-legged showdown with an eliminated Champions League side. Among those contenders could potentially be the likes of Barcelona, Atletico Madrid, Ajax, Juventus and Europa League experts Sevilla.
They need to either match or better PSV's result next week in order to qualify as group winners and avoid that fate. Arsenal have certainly earned plenty of plaudits this season - and justifiably so - but there are a few worrying signs developing for Arteta's troops.
The miserable defeat in Eindhoven marks the first time that they have failed to find the net since the infamous 2-0 defeat to Newcastle United last term. It also means that the Gunners have not scored more than one goal in a single game in any of their last five outings in all competitions.
Another man that has sparkled for Arsenal so far this season has been Swiss midfielder Granit Xhaka. He has shone throughout the vast majority of the campaign, with his experience and new-found composure having garnered plenty of praise.
He let his teammates down late on though as an unsavoury incident with Simons saw the midfielder attempt to push the midfielder off the pitch following his substitution. Xhaka, the aggressor, was awarded a yellow card for his actions and will now miss out on a key game next week through suspension with the Gunners of course attempting to win the group.
In his haste to avoid two extra Europa League fixtures, Mikel Arteta may now have to bring out the big guns for one more. This was Arsenal’s worst performance of the season by some distance and, while it is hardly time for alarm bells, a wake-up call had been coming.
They never got going against a motivated PSV Eindhoven who were transformed by a masterclass in centre-forward play from the half-time substitute Luuk De Jong and it leaves the visitors’ manager with an unwelcome dilemma.
The subject of tiredness has been a creeping theme in Arsenal’s season, largely because of Arteta’s insistence on fielding strong sides in unremarkable Group A. It had brought them a 100% record up to this point and a draw here would have meant a potential night off against FC Zürich next Thursday. While Arsenal have already qualified for the knockout stage, winning the group would mean they bypass a dicey play-off in February, a round in which Juventus and Barcelona await.
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