Arsenal defeat to Fulham exposes ‘worrying trend’ under Mikel Arteta

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Arsenal fell to a hugely disappointing defeat away at Fulham, in what was the worst possible response to their loss against West Ham on Thursday.

In what was their worst performance of the season, Arsenal collapsed from a winning position and struggled all over the pitch as they were beaten 2-1 after goals from Raul Jimenez and Bobby Reid.

After losing at home to West Ham in the previous game, which followed a draw at Liverpool, Arsenal are now winless in three league games, and have lost significant ground in the title race.

Both the manner of the loss, and the context in which Arsenal fell to defeat, have exposed a pattern of results which have happened on several occasions under Mikel Arteta.

Arsenal’s consecutive defeats under Mikel Arteta

Since Arteta’s arrival in 2019, Arsenal have dramatically improved, returning to the Champions League and are now challenging at the top end of the league, but there has been a pattern of consecutive bad results on several occasions.

When Arsenal lose a crucial game under Arteta, there has been a tendency to go on a winless run.

In 2022, when fighting for a place in the top four, Arsenal went to Crystal Palace after a good run of form and were beaten 3-0. They then lost the following two games against Brighton and Southampton, which ultimately cost them a top four position.

Last season, during the Premier League title run-in, Arsenal threw away a lead against Liverpool to draw, then did the same against West Ham before then drawing against Southampton and losing to Manchester City.

Now, they are again three games without a victory, as one negative result has seemingly snowballed into several.

Worrying signs for Mikel Arteta?

These consistent dips in form have been described as a “worrying trend” by journalist Aaron Catterson-Reid, and this may be a root problem of Arteta’s team selections.

Arteta has given continuous minutes to underperforming players including Gabriel Martinelli, and not used options on his bench such as Reiss Nelson or Emile Smith Rowe. His reluctance to make changes, to his tactics or his lineup, means that it is perhaps tough for Arsenal to break these losing runs when they start to set in.

The Spaniard now needs Arsenal to bounce back in the FA Cup against Liverpool. Another defeat, which would be the third in a row, could threaten to unravel any hopes of success Arsenal have this season, and there were plenty of worrying signs against Fulham.