Arsenal’s Premier League title hopes were dealt a blow on Sunday as they slumped to a 1-1 draw against Fulham.
Six points now separate Arsenal and league leaders Liverpool. The Reds also hold a game in hand after their Merseyside derby clash with Everton was postponed.
Mikel Arteta won’t be ready to give up on the title at this point, but he would concede that his side are far from where they would have hoped and expected to be at this stage of the campaign.
Arsenal were tipped to become champions this season, but there have been far too many poor results and below par performances to put them in a strong position.
Arsenal summer transfer business has proved disastrous
Having finished as runners up in each of the last two seasons, Arteta spent the most recent summer transfer window plotting a way to take his Arsenal squad forward that next, final step.
The Gunners signed four players during the off-season, with Riccardo Calafiori and Mikel Merino arriving at the Emirates Stadium on a permanent basis, and Neto and Raheem Sterling signing on loan deals.
The decision to sign Sterling has backfired, as Arteta clearly lacks faith in the 30-year-old who is a shadow of the player he once was. Meanwhile, goalkeeper Neto has made no impact in North London as he is still waiting to make his debut for the club.
Neto recently explained his decision to join Arsenal, and he was a necessary signing as the club required back up for David Raya, but he certainly hasn’t raised the level of Arteta’s squad.
Meanwhile, Merino has struggled to maintain his fitness, and has largely been underwhelming when he has played.
Calafiori has been able impress the most out of the clutch of new arrivals, and looks to be a perfect fit for this Arsenal side. However, the Italian defender is another who has been sidelined all too often, and has managed just eight Premier League appearances so far this season.
Calafiori is injured again now, and the Gunners will have been aware of his chequered fitness history when they prised him away from Bologna.
Can Arsenal still win the Premier League title this season?
A bad transfer window can cripple a club, and the Gunners have certainly taken a backwards step since last season. Arteta, and whoever is appointed to replace recently departed sporting director Edu Gaspar, need to reassess Arsenal’s approach to their transfer business.
| Position | Team | Played MP | Won W | Drawn D | Lost L | For GF | Against GA | Diff GD | Points Pts |
| 1 |  LiverpoolLiverpool | 14 | 11 | 2 | 1 | 29 | 11 | 18 | 35 |
| 2 |  ChelseaChelsea | 15 | 9 | 4 | 2 | 35 | 18 | 17 | 31 |
| 3 |  ArsenalArsenal | 15 | 8 | 5 | 2 | 29 | 15 | 14 | 29 |
| 4 |  Man CityManchester City | 15 | 8 | 3 | 4 | 27 | 21 | 6 | 27 |
As for this season, the Gunners are not entirely out of the title race yet, but it is hard to see how this squad could produce the consistency that will be required to chase down Liverpool at this stage.
Arsenal fans are demanding that Arteta sign a striker, and the club certainly require a clinical goalscorer to lead the line. But belief in the Spanish coach’s ability to identify the right player to take up that position may now have been significantly eroded.
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