There is a very clear pattern about Arsenal these days. It wins a handful of games in a row and everybody gets very excited, and then it plays a big side and loses, and everybody realizes its wins were all against weaker teams. And that’s why, quite apart from the points on offer, Wednesday’s home game against Liverpool is so important. It’s also why the most encouraging performance from Arsenal so far this year was probably the 2–1 defeat to Manchester City on New Year’s Day.
Arsenal was 1–0 up in that game and playing extremely well before, in quick succession, striker Gabriel Martinelli missed a very good chance, Manchester City was awarded a penalty as Granit Xhaka grabbed at Bernardo Silva’s shirt and center back Gabriel was sent off. City ended up winning, and it’s reasonable to point out that Arsenal to a large degree blew up under pressure in that game, yet another example of its weakness of temperament. But it’s also only fair to acknowledge that, for the period it was 11 vs. 11, Arsenal, for the first time in years, looked like the better side against high-class opposition in a league game.
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