Arsenal facing meltdown as Mikel Arteta's poor tactics lead to Bournemouth win

Arsenal's Premier League title hopes suffered a blow on Saturday after a 2-1 home defeat to Bournemouth, handing Pep Guardiola and Manchester City a huge championship chance

Arsenal lost a huge match in the Premier League title race(Image: Getty Images)

The Premier League title chase has been thrown wide open following Arsenal's 2-1 defeat to Bournemouth at the Emirates on Saturday, courtesy of goals from Eli Junior Kroupi and Alex Scott, sandwiching a Viktor Gyokeres penalty.

Arsenal's quadruple aspirations crumbled within mere weeks after losses in both domestic cup contests. However, a midweek win over Sporting in Lisbon saw the Gunners regain their footing in Europe before resuming Premier League duties against the Cherries.

An early kick-off at the Emirates offered the Gunners an optimal opportunity to extend their lead at the summit of the table ahead of Manchester City's Sunday clash with Chelsea. But a lackluster display resulted in a deserved defeat for Arsenal.

Arteta's surprising move was to include Myles Lewis-Skelly in the starting XI for only the second time in the Premier League this season, and for his first league outing since January 8.

Regarded by a significant portion of the Arsenal fanbase and a fair number of English soccer fans as the top left-back in the league last season, Lewis-Skelly seemed a shoo-in for England's starting left-back position at this summer's World Cup. However, he has found himself sidelined on both the club and national stage.

The 19-year-old was also tasked with containing the league's most dazzling winger in teenage sensation Rayan. Yet it was another young Bournemouth attacker who caught Lewis-Skelly off guard, as Kroupi peeled away from the left-back to convert Adrien Truffert's deflected cross with just 17 minutes gone.

Alex Scott scored the winner with 15 minutes to play(Image: Getty Images)

Arsenal's frustration mounted until referee Michael Oliver pointed to the spot for a controversial handball after Ryan Christie's outstretched arm blocked Gabriel's goal-bound attempt. However, some contended that the proximity gave the Cherries midfielder insufficient time to withdraw his arm from its natural position.

Nevertheless, Gyokeres confidently converted the spot-kick, hammering it into the side netting beyond the fully extended Djordje Petrovic in the 35th minute.

A match severely lacking in clear-cut opportunities at both ends drifted into the interval level and showed little improvement in the opening 10 minutes after the restart, prompting Arteta to make three substitutions.

Noni Madueke, Kai Havertz, and Gabriel Martinelli were all withdrawn for Eberechi Eze, Leandro Trossard, and 16-year-old prodigy Max Dowman in an attempt to breathe life into proceedings.

The familiar sense of anxious frustration that grips the Emirates when Arsenal fail to find the net was palpable whenever David Raya had possession. Groans and demands for swifter play rang out, particularly when Alex Scott bore down on goal moments after Raya squandered possession with a wayward clearance upfield.

Scott took an exquisite first touch as the Arsenal backline split down the center, before the English midfielder calmly sent Raya to ground and curled his effort into the top corner from just inside the area with 16 minutes remaining.

Arsenal lacked creativity throughout the encounter, but Dowman's introduction injected urgency into the team's forward play, and his dangerous delivery, which Petrovic failed to handle properly, dropped to Gyokeres, though the Swede lost his footing and blazed the gilt-edged opportunity over. Gabriel ended proceedings operating as an additional forward alongside the towering Swede, who subsequently dragged an attempt wide from 18 yards during stoppage time.

The loss puts Manchester City in pole position to claim the title if it wins its remaining fixtures. Pep Guardiola's players have two matches in hand and welcome the Gunners next Sunday, presently trailing the leaders by nine points. Meanwhile, Bournemouth extends its unbeaten run to 12 matches and sits just four points adrift of Liverpool in the final Champions League berth.