Gary Neville accused Arsenal’s set-piece obsession for title failure

According to Gary Neville, Arsenal’s “obsession” with set pieces is a factor in their inability to win the Premier League this year. On Saturday, the Gunners lost to West Ham at home, wasting the opportunity to cut the distance on top-seeded Liverpool to five points. They witnessed Liverpool easily defeat Manchester City 2-0 to go 11 points ahead just over twenty-four hours later.

Gabriel Jesus and Kai Havertz were sidelined for the remainder of the season, while Arsenal has sustained numerous injuries this season, most notably to key forward Bukayo Saka. However, Neville thinks the Gunners’ loss is more down to a new “rigid” strategy, set-piece Nicolas Jover’s presence on the touchline, and the ensuing lack of “freedom.”

They didn’t want to do business during the January transfer window, as far as I know. They believed that they provided little value to the market or that they were unable to acquire a player who could have an impact on them, but they have let themselves down. There’s no question about it.

Gary Neville outlines where Arsenal’s title bid has failed

Arteta has been dealing with a lengthy list of injuries, as four of his forwards are presently out. Although those absentees are taken into consideration, Neville feels the Gunners have been their own worst adversaries. Wednesday marks Arsenal’s return to play against Nottingham Forest, with Nuno’s team coming off a 4-3 loss at Newcastle on Sunday. “The North Londoners just weren’t at their best before and after Myles Lewis-Skelly’s red card,” Gunners captain Martin Odegaard said in his reflections on the loss to West Ham.

Odegaard stated, “We put a lot of pressure on them and tried, even with 10 men, but I think we lacked a bit of efficiency in the final third, the final pass, and the final cross because we should have been sharper and better around the box.” “I believe that’s what we missed today, and we also gave them a couple of opportunities to run a little too easily, so it’s a huge setback and unfortunate. We have to respond immediately in the next one and move on.

“We need to keep moving forward; this is not the time to feel sorry for ourselves. We must continue because we have a lot more games still to play. Now, the most important thing is to win the following one and proceed accordingly.