Arsenal goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale has delivered an honest assessment of the Gunners' performance after they were beaten 2-1 by Brighton at the Emirates on Saturday afternoon. It marked a second defeat in a weak as their grip on fourth place loosened significantly as we enter the last eight games of the season.
Crystal Palace got the better of Mikel Arteta and his side on Monday night, blowing them away in the first half. Goals from Jean-Phillipe Mateta and Jordan Ayew gave the Gunners a tough task and Wilfried Zaha wrapped things up in the second half. Brighton followed suit, taking a two-goal lead through Leandro Trossard and Enock Mwepu before Martin Odegaard finally clawed one back.
But it was too little, too late. A 4-0 win for Tottenham away to Aston Villa in the evening moved Antonio Conte's side three points clear. Arsenal boast a game in hand over their arch-rivals but with a superior goal difference of 10, Spurs are certainly in the driving seat for that coveted spot. After the game, Ramsdale was asked his thoughts on the game and gave an honest assessment.
"It's not good enough," Ramsdale told Arsenal's official website, delivering a succinct four-word verdict. "Two games on the spin where the first 45 minutes has got away from us. You make it an uphill battle against any team in the Premier League if you're losing at half-time," he elaborated.
"We were not in the rhythm of the game, that's unlike us, especially at home where we've normally started really well all season. It was a really poor performance and as I said we, went to the end but that's a given at any club, especially this club. When you give a team a step up in the Premier League it's always hard to get back in the game.
"One-nil down is tough enough, two-nil down in the Premier League is even harder, so if we'd have got the first goal back even earlier we might have pushed and pushed but there was too much to do in the end.
"This was supposed to be the reaction game but it wasn't. We've lost and not managed to pick up any points and next week is even bigger. I think we just need to go out there and be free and play our game, you know? It's a game of football and I think in the first half we were very tense and slow so we just need to go out there next week, trust what the manager and the coaching staff are saying and go and play our football, which we've done all season."
