Mikel Arteta hit his famous ‘I believe’ line again after Arsenal’s loss to Manchester City tightened the Premier League title race. City’s 2-1 win reduced the gap to just three points, with the game in hand swinging the momentum heavily in their favour.
Defeat for the Gunners at the Etihad turned what looked like a comfortable run into a proper title run. With only five games to go, every moment now carries weight and the margin for error has all but disappeared.
Despite the setback, Arteta stuck to his script. Speaking after the game, he doubled down on his belief, insisting Arsenal are still very much in the race.
“I believe today, I believed a week ago because I see them every day and I know the level we have. If they needed more belief, I think they have it now. They talked about it in the dressing room. Now it’s a new league. They have a game in hand, we have a three-point lead and five games to play for. Everything is still up for grabs,” Arteta said.
“Obviously they were very disappointed not to get the result the way it did. That was the immediate feeling. But they also said we lost an opportunity today and now we have the biggest one in the next five games. So let’s go for it,” he added.
THE PREMIER LEAGUE RACE IS GETTING HARD
In the match itself, City took control at key moments, with Erling Haaland scoring the decisive goal in the 65th minute. Arsenal responded earlier through Kai Havertz after Ryan Cherki’s opener, but ultimately could not find a way back.
Arsenal had their moments. Havertz had chances at 1-1 and again late on, the kind of chances that can define the title race. However, missed opportunities proved costly as City held on for a decisive victory.
Now comes the twist. City still have a game against Burnley. Win it and they could top the goal difference or goals scored.
For Arsenal, this is where the title race stops being about faith and becomes about execution. Five games, three points and zero room for mistakes. The “I believe” line still applies, but from now on it needs results to match.
– The end
Issued by:
Debodinna Chakraborty
Published on:
20 Apr 2026 10:41 IST
