Arsenal sporting director Edu has dismissed claims that the Gunners 'bottled' the Premier League title.
Mikel Arteta's side had led the league for the majority of the season, finding themselves as many as eight points clear of Manchester City in second. But a sticky run of form in April saw them winless in four successive fixtures - picking up just three points from a possible 12.
This coincided with City dominating, winning 12 league matches on the bounce before the north Londoners eventually lost back-to-back games against Brighton and Nottingham Forest earlier this month - the latter of which confirmed Pep Guardiola and Co as champions last weekend. This has resulted in plenty of fans and pundits arguing that Arsenal 'bottled' the title, a word that Edu has made clear he doesn't like.
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“I think it needs a little more elaborate analysis", he told ESPN Brasil when asked about the accusation. "My role makes me need to understand the season as a whole.
"Perhaps in these last five games, we had a drop in performance, which was sustaining us to fight for the title and be fighting for the title was really the consistency of performance. From the moment we had this drop in performance, we have to understand why. This is already well understood by us.
“Saying Arsenal ‘bottled’ is a word I wouldn’t use, we created our own frustration. Nobody expected us to fight for the title. You being frustrated about not winning the title is a change of mind.
"It could even be considered, let’s say, positive, considering times ago. In the past, we celebrated the fourth place, the third. Today, we are frustrated with the second."
Edu then praised his side for securing a top-four finish, something that meant the Gunners qualified for next season's UEFA Champions League - the first time they will play in Europe's elite competition since the 2016/17 campaign. He added: "It makes me think about some things, that the path we are tracing at the club is being positive.
"We cannot forget, we are in the Premier League, coming from a club that had not entered the Champions League for seven years, fighting with the clubs we’re fighting, potential clubs from historic gaming powerhouses and financial powerhouses, too, and now putting Arsenal where they need to be.”
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