The Premier League title race has officially heated up and perhaps Arsenal's biggest concern is that they are starting to clearly feel the pressure of this war.
Aston Villa were rewarded for their endless determination with a thrilling 2-1 victory over the leaders at Villa Park, thanks to a goal in the 95th minute by a substitute Emiliano Buendia. The late goal made the stadium explode in excitement.
Coach Unai Emery could not hide his joy. On the other hand, goalkeeper David Raya could only hit the ball hard against the post to express his disappointment.
The joyful sound has certainly been heard at the Etihad, where Manchester City are entering the final stages of preparation ahead of the match against Sunderland. They then won 3-0 to narrow the gap with Arsenal to 2 points. Villa - who had not won a Premier League game until September 28 - are now just three points behind the leaders.
Chelsea, once considered a potential opponent after last week's 1-1 draw with Arsenal, continues to miss steps. After a 1-3 defeat to Leeds, they only drew 0-0 with Bournemouth and are now 8 points behind Arsenal.
There is always a possibility that injuries will soon impact Arsenal, even as they have spent £250 million to bring in 8 new players in the summer to reduce the risk of having to compete on many fronts.
Coach Mikel Arteta was forced to use his sixth centre-back of the season but Piero Hincapie and Jurrien Timber could not create the stability of the duo William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhaes. Ben White has only started 2 consecutive matches for the first time this season and is having difficulty maintaining the pace of the match.
In another development, captain Martin Odegaard only played the full 90 minutes for the second time since October 1 and his performance has declined significantly over time. In contrast, Declan Rice was a complete waste in almost every match and also lost his energy late in the match.
Overall, Arsenal are now a group of players who are either not at their best or are exhausted after a tight schedule with a series of consecutive matches against Tottenham Hotspur, Bayern Munich, Chelsea, Brentford and now Aston Villa in just 14 days. There was a time when people believed that the championship race this season could be a "parade" for Arsenal. Of course, that can still happen, because the stability of Man City, Villa, Chelsea or any other competitor has not been verified.
However, the defeat against Villa opened the door for the group to chase. And this is another psychological challenge that Arsenal should not have faced at this stage.
This is the time for The Gunners to keep their spirits up. Arteta's concern has increased as Mosquera will be out for several weeks with an ankle injury, while Leandro Trossard may have a relapse of a calf injury, forcing him to leave the pitch at the end of the first half despite only coming on as a substitute.
However, the defeat to Aston Villa was Arsenal's first Premier League defeat since August 31. The upcoming schedule is also somewhat more comfortable, with the away trip to Club Brugge in the Champions League in midweek. This is an opportunity for them to rotate their squad, before returning home to welcome bottom-placed Wolves.
Arsenal do not need to panic. But they had to react immediately. Because in a tight championship race, every stumble can create momentum for the opponents behind to break up.
