Arsenal slumped to their second home defeat of the season as Bournemouth won 2-1 at the Emirates Stadium.
Arsenal fans were in awe of Declan Rice following the midfielder’s superb opening goal from Martin Odegaard’s exquisite assist and everything was going according to plan for Mikel Arteta’s side.
However, Arsenal transfer target Dean Huijsen rose highest from Antoine Semenyo’s long throw to glance home an equaliser for Bournemouth.
Evanilson’s controversial winner was allowed by VAR following a lengthy check for an effort which appeared to strike his elbow but the Gunners were defeated and now face a fight to qualify for the Champions League next season.
READ MORE: Two winners and three losers from Arsenal’s Premier League clash with Bournemouth
Jamie Redknapp slams Arsenal defending of set pieces
Arsenal conceded from two set pieces to take their tally to 48% of their goals conceded this season from the route.
Sky Sports pundit Jamie Redknapp slammed the Gunners defending and even pointed to the weakness as a potential factor behind their title failures this campaign.
Redknapp stated: “We all talk about Arsenal being magnificent from offensive set pieces, you know the detail they get into but they need to work harder on this.
“There are certain things that can stop you winning a title and this certainly will be one of them. The set piece coach gets a lot of plaudits for when they score goals, I don’t know his impact perhaps on the defensive ones but they are definitely not good enough.”
Defeat for Arsenal means they still require four points from their final three Premier League matches to guarantee a top five finish and they still have tricky clashes with Liverpool and Newcastle to come.
Jamie Redknapp highlights absence of Gabriel Magalhaes for set piece failures
Jakub Kiwior has been exceptional in the absence of Gabriel Magalhaes but Redknapp believes that the Gunners are missing the Brazilian defender from a defensive aspect in set pieces.
Redknapp explained: “They miss Gabriel as well, he’s a massive player when he plays in terms of set pieces because he’s a leader and he heads it but they didn’t deal with either set piece today and it cost them the match.”
Arteta must now pick his side up and instil belief in the squad that they can still make a success of the remainder of the season.
The tie in Paris is far from over and second place is still in their hands, the Gunners just have to step up to the challenge now.
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