Arsenal suffered defeat at the Emirates after falling to their old foes Manchester United and their status as title favourites has taken a mighty blow.
In a five-goal thriller, Matheus Cunha netted a late winner just seconds after Arsenal thought they earned themselves a draw through Mikel Merino.
Arsenal had taken the lead through Lisandro Martinez before goals from Bryan Mbeumo and Patrick Dorgu flipped the script as Michael Carrick followed up his victory over Manchester City with another big scalp.
While the Gunners remain four points clear of Manchester City and Aston Villa, second and third respectively, there were not many fans leaving the Emirates on Sunday evening who were full of confidence.
Matheus Cunha’s late strike saw Arsenal lose their first match this season from a winning position
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REUTERS
It has been a wretched start to 2026 for the north London side, whose last two Premier League matches ended in 0-0 draws to Nottingham Forest and Liverpool.
Every title charge has hiccups along the way and Mikel Arteta will be hoping that this moment is nothing more than just that – though Sunday’s defeat was ultimately down to the Spaniard – here’s why.
No creativity
Arsenal lacked creativity against Manchester United
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REUTERS
While Arsenal scored twice against United, let’s take a closer look at those goals. The first was an own goal from Martinez after the ball bobbled off his foot and into the net.
And the second was as customary as it gets for the Gunners, a goalmouth scramble from a corner with Merino poking the ball over the line in chaotic fashion.
It has been a common theme for Arsenal this season to scrape wins past opponents with their superior set-pieces – but when it comes open play, Arteta’s men just aren’t at the races enough. That could prove fatal come the end of the season.
Patrick Dorgu scored a beauty of a strike after half-time for United
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REUTERS
Where was the aggression?
Speaking in the Sky Sports studio, Arsenal legend Patrick Vieira said it right.
“When you’re at the top of the table you expect to win the game at home. Especially against United. There was a lack of aggression. Too many players failed to deliver.”
There is a man who knows a thing or today about aggression – and it is easy to see why he was disgusted by Sunday’s display. This is a big match that means a lot to the fans.
Frankly, this was a tepid display despite the Emirates roaring them on. Arteta’s controlling tactics have done plenty of good for the Gunners, they did not work here.
“There’s still some questions on the mentality of the team..there was a lack of creativity.”
Patrick Vieira felt like he was watching a different Arsenal against Man Utd. pic.twitter.com/6GyEHiKZiS
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) January 25, 2026
Embrace the pressure, don’t hide from it
Arsenal are the league leaders and the favourites to win the title, having finished runners-up three years in a row previously. It is time to start acting like the big boys.
Arteta’s tactics seemed baffling, happy to pass sideways and backwards while United had one thing in their minds – attack.
To play like this at home in such an important match was an abandonment of what Arsenal should be about, and what prospective title winners should be about.
