The loud-speaker system welcomed Arsenal back out on to the pitch after half-time with the Beastie Boys singing ‘Fight for Your Right’ to party. But there were no Beastie Boys in Arsenal red in this match when they should have been reaching out to grab the Premier League title. There were only lost boys. And any fight they had was overwhelmed by fear.
Mikel Arteta had issued a call-to-arms to Arsenal supporters before the match. He had told them to have an early breakfast and bring food with them to this pivotal contest against Bournemouth. In the event, Arsenal fans were not much in the mood for lunch.
They were not much in the mood for anything. Except screaming out their despair and howling their frustration and mourning a title lead they are now in real danger of throwing away to Manchester City.
This Arsenal defeat means that if City, who are nine points behind Arsenal with two games in hand and a match between the teams to be played at the Etihad next weekend, win their remaining eight games, they will be champions for the fifth time in six seasons.
Whether this incarnation of City is good enough to do that is another matter but this incarnation of Arsenal looks shot to pieces with nerves and trepidation. They can see the finish line but they are shrinking away from it.
They played here, actually, as if they were scared of it. They are so close to winning their first title for 22 years and now the prize is in front of them, they are running away from it. They were so tentative against Andoni Iraola’s side they looked afraid to cross the half-way line.
Bournemouth were bold and assured and confident and inventive and full of energy. Arsenal were none of those things. They looked paralysed with fear, determined only to play a safety-first brand of football that emboldened Bournemouth further.
There is still time for many more twists in the title race and the fact remains that if Arsenal draw or win at the Etihad next Sunday and win their other five remaining games, they will win the title. It is just that the way they played here, they did not look capable of winning another match.
They need to rediscover their verve and their poise if they are to hold off City because they did not deserve anything out of this match. Their supporters began to file out long before the end. ‘Is there a fire drill?’ the Bournemouth fans sang delightedly. The final whistle was met with a chorus of desultory boos from the Arsenal supporters.
Arsenal began the game nervously. They struggled to play the ball out of defence and beat the Bournemouth press. They could not construct a coherent move. They did not create a chance. They misplaced simple passes. Bournemouth looked the more confident side.
It was not a surprise when the visitors took the lead with a lovely move. Ryan Christie was given space on the edge of the Arsenal box and threaded a fine pass through to Adrien Truffert on the left.
Truffert’s cross hit William Saliba on the foot and spun up into the air. It spiralled over David Raya and fell to Junior Kroupi at the back post. He leapt high and volleyed the ball home from close range.
Arsenal grew frustrated, on the pitch and in the stands. Martin Zubimendi aimed a pass towards Ben White and White watched it roll past him into touch. Kai Havertz was easily dispossessed by James Hill and a spectator in front of the press box leapt up and down in impotent fury over and over again.
Arsenal were playing without conviction. Noni Madueke overran an attempt to dribble past Truffert, Viktor Gyokeres lost the ball every time he ran at a defender. Arsenal kept giving the ball away, kept making mistakes. The groans and the shouts of frustration grew louder and louder.
Then, 10 minutes before half-time, salvation held out its hand. Gabriel made a nuisance of himself at an Arsenal corner. In a melee, he flicked at the ball with his boot and it flew up and hit Ryan Christie’s outstretched arm. Gyokeres took the penalty and drilled it past Djordje Petrovic’s right hand into the net.
It was a reprieve for Arsenal when a kind of hopelessness had started to overwhelm them but when they settled back into their tentative pattern, Arteta shook things up and brought on Max Dowman, Eberechi Eze and Leandro Trossard ten minutes after half-time.
Raya reacted to the change by attempting an absurdly ambitious pass out of defence with the outside of his right foot. It went straight to Evanilson but it was Raya’s good fortune that the Bournemouth striker could not control it.
Raya concocted more ways to give Arsenal fans heart failure with risky clearances before Declan Rice, captain on the occasion of his 100th appearance for the club, drove forward and unleashed a rising drive that Petrovic tipped over the crossbar.
But it was not enough. It was not nearly enough. And 15 minutes from the end, Arsenal got what they deserved and Bournemouth got what they deserved when Alex Scott galloped through the heart of the home defence on to a through ball from Evanilson and clipped his shot unerringly past Raya.
Arsenal desperately tried to locate some urgency or some belief in their play. It was beyond them.
