Arsenal’s Title Dream in Man City’s Hands Amid ‘Bottle’ Fears
Arsenal’s 2-goal collapse against Wolves fuels Premier League title pressure, as Manchester City gain control in a tense race.
After squandering a two-goal lead and drawing against Premier League bottom club Wolves, the question now becomes unavoidable: whether Arsenal are mentally ready to end their 22-year wait for the title.
For the first time this season, the title race is not entirely in the control of Mikel Arteta and his players.
If Manchester City – five points behind in second place – win all their remaining 12 games, including a home match against Arsenal, they will move into first place.
However, the same can be said for the Gunners, who have 11 matches remaining – and if they win their match at the Etihad Stadium in April.
But after dropping four crucial points in consecutive draws against Brentford and Wolves, they are in danger of being haunted by the ghosts of past failures.
Three consecutive runner-up finishes, two of which were against Pep Guardiola's players, are a constant reminder.
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Former Arsenal forward Alan Smith admitted that "the word 'bottle' will be used a lot in the next few days."
When Piero Hincapie scored his first goal for the club in the 56th minute, the atmosphere seemed quite different, and Bukayo Saka's fifth-minute opener was no different.
But the Gunners lacked the control and ruthlessness to defeat a Wolves team that had lost its previous nine matches and is now heading for the Championship.
The hosts showed great spirit to come back with Hugo Bueno's 20-yard curler giving them hope. Then, in the fourth minute of extra time, 19-year-old Tom Edozie – who came on from the bench for his senior debut – took advantage of a mix-up between Arsenal duo David Raya and Gabriel, and his shot deflected off Riccardo Calafiori for a stunning, dreamlike equaliser.
Arsenal's next match is against Tottenham and Chelsea in the London derby, and they are worryingly faltering at a crucial juncture of the season.
Arteta knows his team will face criticism and scrutiny.
"Whatever your opinion is, it has to be endured," he said. "Any bullet, it has to be endured because we didn't perform at the required level."
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"Whatever anyone says, they could be right because we didn't do what we had to do." The way to do that is on the field on Sunday [against Spurs].
Wolves boss Rob Edwards said his team knew Arsenal were under "a lot of pressure" at the moment - and they took advantage of it.
The Gunners haven't been at their best since the start of 2026 and have won just two of their last seven league matches, including victories against Leeds and Sunderland.
Arteta added: "There are some basic things we need to do, and we did them very poorly, one after the other.
"It's better not to judge. We're all very emotional about it. You have to take it because we deserve it. It's very easy to say things in a fit of emotion that can harm the team. Everyone wants to do their best."
Only Crystal Palace and West Ham (both eight) have dropped more points from winning positions in the league in 2026 than Arsenal (seven), and the Gunners have now failed to win from leading positions in three of their last five league matches.
This was the first time in Premier League history that a team starting at the bottom of the table avoided losing to the leaders despite trailing by two or more goals.
"It feels like a crucial moment, perhaps a turning point," Smith said on Sky Sports.
"It's in Manchester City's hands now. With my experience and Guardiola's, they'll really like it. They can almost feel the nervousness in this Arsenal team, watching them.
"Leading 2-0 against a team at the bottom with nine points isn't enough for a team hoping to win the title. It's not a good sign for Arsenal to be able to handle the pressure."
"We dropped our standard too much"
The result also meant Arsenal failed to win an away league game in which they had a two-goal lead against West Ham for the first time since April 2023, a period that lasted 18 matches.
Forward Saka, who ended a 15-match goal drought in all competitions, said there was a "big difference" in his team's performance in the second half compared to the first.
"I'm disappointed, there's nothing more to say," the England international said. "We dropped our standard too much and we were punished for it."
Just a day after signing a new five-year deal, he had once again put his team ahead, playing in the number 10 role, but after being stretchered off in the 73rd minute for treatment, he could only watch in disappointment at the end.
"It's very flat," Saka said. "Now it's time for us to reflect on the last few performances and fix the problems." It's time. Immediately, so we can win games, score runs and build momentum because we've lost that a bit right now."
"I just think we need to get back to our level. Get the basics right and this team has enough quality to win games, especially the ones we've been losing points in recently. We need to fix that and that's our main focus right now."
'We need to get through the pain and look in the mirror'
With the North London derby against Tottenham on Sunday, Arsenal will need to respond quickly.
Spurs will have Igor Tudor at their disposal and will hope he can give them a 'new manager bounce' to further add to the Gunners' troubles.
Arteta admitted: "We need to get through the pain, look in the mirror and understand what's required of us in the game on Sunday.
"Whatever we say from here is fine, but we have to keep it all in our stomachs and show it on Sunday."
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