Can Arsenal keep it together this season?

Arsenal’s 2025/26 season is crumbling under the weight of expectation. Just a few short weeks ago, Gooners worldwide were already projecting a famous quadruple, hoping to become the first team in the history of English football to win all four trophies on offer in the same season. But what a difference a few weeks makes.

The Gunners were unable to claim the first of those four titles when they were beaten in the League Cup final by perennial nemesis Manchester City, losing 2-0 at Wembley courtesy of a Nico O’Reilly brace. They were then stunned in the FA Cup quarterfinals when they were beaten by second-tier Southampton at St. Mary’s. And while they did manage to win the first leg of their Champions League quarterfinal against Sporting CP in Lisbon after Kai Havertz’s last-gasp winner, their Premier League title challenge is also unraveling.

Bournemouth Defeat Plunges Gunners into Crisis Mode

April 11th brought Arsenal’s first Premier League game in three weeks, with the visit of Bournemouth widely expected to yield three points for the hosts. Instead, goals from Junior Kroupi and Alex Scott sealed a shocking 2-1 victory for the visiting Cherries, with the impotent Gunners unable to yield any form of attacking threat at all. Now, the door is wide open for Manchester City to once again reel in Mikel Arteta’s men at the summit of English football.

At the time of writing, Arsenal remain nine points clear of Pep Guardiola’s second-place Blues, and it is that points advantage that ensures the Gunners remain the title favorites with online betting sites. The latest odds from Lucky Rebel Sportsbook list the current table toppers as the 2/5 favorites to claim the crown; however, all isn’t as it seems with that nine-point advantage. City has two games in hand on Arteta’s men, while the two teams will clash at the Etihad in the not-so-distant future. If Pep Guardiola’s juggernaut wins all of those games, then they will move level on points with Arsenal with just a handful of games remaining.

So then, was that League Cup final defeat the moment that Arsenal’s 2025/26 season fell apart? It certainly looks that way right now, and the onus is on them to steady the ship quickly before their campaign unravels entirely. In each of the last three seasons, they have been unable to do that…

2022/23: Arsenal Throw Away Two-Goal Lead at Anfield

Three years ago, Arsenal found themselves as the surprise Premier League leaders with just a few games remaining. Their 4-1 victory at home to Leeds United extended their advantage over Manchester City to eight points, but just like this season, all wasn’t as it seemed. The Blues had two games in hand on the Gunners, and the two teams were set to meet at the end of April with the title likely on the line. That was then — and in the time since, plenty has changed, not just in football but across the sporting world as a whole. As the combat sports podcast below highlights, there could be even more change on the horizon:

Embed YouTube video here – https://youtu.be/HflNp3NhM1U

But that campaign three years ago shares some eerie similarities to the one underway right now. Just like the current title race, the Blues had two games in hand on the Gunners, and the two teams were set to meet at the end of April with the title likely on the line. Unfortunately for Arsenal, things started crumbling long before that Etihad clash.

Arteta’s men raced into a two-goal lead on their trip to face Liverpool at Anfield, and it looked as though they would pick up a huge three points en route to an unlikely league triumph. Then, disaster struck. Mohamed Salah would pull a goal back on the stroke of half-time before Roberto Firmino’s 87th-minute equalizer forced the Gunners to settle for a 2-2 draw.

From there, the wheels came off. Arsenal threw away another two-goal lead at West Ham a week later, before drawing 3-3 at home to rock-bottom Southampton the week after that. By the time they faced City at the Etihad, the Blues were already ahead in the title race with games in hand, but they romped to a 4-1 victory anyway, rubber-stamping their status as the Premier League’s dominant force. They would claim the title by five points, while the Gunners were left empty-handed.

2023/24: 2-0 Home Defeat Crushes Arsenal’s Hopes

The following season, Arsenal were locked in a three-way title fight for the ages, with both Liverpool and Manchester City in contention. However, on matchday 32, the pendulum swung decisively in the Blues’ favor.

The Reds were leading the title race heading into the weekend, but they were shockingly beaten at home by Crystal Palace, opening the door for the Gunners. However, they blew their big opportunity to seize control, also losing at home after late goals from Leon Bailey and Ollie Watkins handed Aston Villa a 2-0 win at the Emirates. From that moment on, both teams were playing catch-up, and Manchester City wouldn’t give them another opportunity.

Guardiola’s Blues would win each of their remaining six games to claim the title, with Arsenal finishing just two points back in second place.

2024/25: Jarrod Bowen Ends Arsenal’s Faint Hopes

Last season, things were a little different. Liverpool were absolutely relentless all season long, amassing an eight-point lead in the title race by February. Arsenal had a chance to cut that gap to five points when West Ham visited the Emirates and keep their faint title hopes alive. Unfortunately, however, they weren’t up to the task.

Jarrod Bowen netted the only goal of the game in the first half, securing a famous 1-0 win for the Hammers. 24 hours later, Liverpool would win away at Manchester City, extending their advantage to 11 points and effectively ending the title race three months early.