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Arsenal must bounce back after a tough week

Two damaging results in the space of six days have blown a sizeable hole in Arsenal’s hopes of enjoying a productive 2024/25 season.

The Gunners suffered a 2-0 home defeat against Newcastle United in the first leg of their League Cup semi-final and their hopes of progressing to the final look slim.

They followed up with a penalty shoot-out defeat against Manchester United in the third round of the FA Cup and must regroup quickly before their season unravels.

Arsenal are still second favourites in the latest Premier League betting, but can ill-afford any further slip-ups if they want to overhaul table-topping Liverpool in the title race.

While the recent defeats could be damaging to morale, manager Mikel Arteta believes his players could not have given any more in either of their cup fixtures.

“It’s incredible how we didn’t win the game,” he said after the Man United match.

“That’s basically to sum up, the dominance, the superiority in relation to the opposition and everything we did to try to win the game and that’s it.

“We didn’t get what we deserve clearly, but there is an element about putting the ball in the back of the net, we did it once, with the number of situations, chances, penalties that we had, we didn’t.

“We go home extremely sad but I cannot be prouder of my players, the team, individually, collectively what they have produced, on Wednesday night against Newcastle, against two top teams, it’s incredible. We haven’t got rewarded and that’s the downside to it.”

Although Arteta’s attempts to put a positive spin on proceedings is admirable, the fans will rightly be worried about how the season is unfolding.

Winning the Premier League was undoubtedly the primary aim at the start of the season, but failing in both domestic cups would still be a big disappointment.

However, the Gunners are perfectly capable of going to St James’ Park and securing a positive result if their top players produce their best form.

Although Arsenal have been defeated on their last two visits to Newcastle, it is worth remembering that they secured a 2-0 victory there in May 2023.

In fairness, the fans would probably sacrifice progression in the League Cup providing Arsenal keep themselves in contention in the Premier League.

The next couple of months month will likely determine whether they can keep pace with Liverpool or if finishing in the top before becomes the height of their ambitions.

The Gunners have several tricky fixtures on the agenda including home games against Manchester City and Chelsea. They cannot afford any setbacks.

The ultimate aim for Arsenal in the Premier League is to move themselves within touching distance of Liverpool when they visit Anfield in May.

The game could potentially be a title decider and Arteta’s side must fight tooth and nail to set up that scenario over the next few months.

The Champions League also offers Arsenal the opportunity to make the 2024/25 campaign a memorable one.

They are well-placed to secure automatic progression to the last-16 and could make further inroads if the draw is kind to them.

With several of Europe’s big hitters underperforming this season, including Real Madrid and Man City, the competition could produce a surprise outcome.

Arsenal still have time to make this a truly magical campaign, but they must shrug off their recent disappointments for that to happen.

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