Thomas Partey surveyed the carcass of Arsenal’s unbeaten run after a damaging defeat at Bournemouth and warned: “We must learn from our mistakes.”
But after the Gunners’ third sending-off in six Premier League games, the penny still hasn’t dropped – it’s stuck in the slot machine.
You can’t win the title with only 10 men, and if Arsenal don’t heed manager Mikel Arteta’s Bourne ultimatum to cut out the red cards, the meter will keep ticking over beyond their 20-year wait to wear the crown.
The Gunners were in front when Declan Rice was dismissed against Brighton in August for kicking the ball away – it finished 1-1. They were in front at title rivals Manchester City last month when Leandro Trossard took the long walk – it finished 2-2.
And although they were sluggish and uninspired at the Vitality, it was goalless before William Saliba’s expulsion for denying Evanilson a clean getaway.
That’s at least five points Arsenal have squandered through ill discipline – and the leaves haven’t even fallen from the trees yet. “We need to play with 11 against 11 if we want to be in the position that we want to be,” warned Arteta.
Agreed – so let’s spell it out for Gooners so there’s no room for equivocation: Arsenal have a disciplinary problem. If they don’t solve it, the party’s over – and midfielder Partey admits it can’t go on.
The big Ghanaian said: “We have to learn from our mistakes and not let them happen again. We are working hard, we are trying to win our duels and sometimes these things happen. We have to stick together because red cards can happen in games and we must learn from every mistake.
“Every time we have 11 players one the pitch, we always dominate the game.”
Without injured skipper Martin Odegaard and England winger Bukayo Saka – their most creative axis – Arsenal looked blunt but secure enough until Saliba was wrong-footed by Trossard’s miscued pass.
Even then, their 10 men were just about holding firm until Ryan Christie’s slick finish to a short corner routine and Justin Kluivert’s penalty after Jakub Kiwior’s horrendous backpass sold keeper David Raya short.
Partey said: “It’s important to have a full squad because you are more confident with all your players, but there is a lot of competition and we have to focus on the game, not on the missing players.
“William is a massive player for us but we have good defenders at the club. Somebody will have to step up, and the coach will know what he’s going to do to help the team.”
Arteta’s 16-match unbeaten run in all competitions, and Arsenal’s unbeaten record away from home in 2024, went up in smoke at the seaside.
Now he must reboot and re-energise his side for a big week – Shakhtar Donetsk at home in the Champions League on Tuesday night, followed by a massive date with title rivals Liverpool on Sunday.
Partey said: “We want to win every game but sometimes things do happen that you can’t control and you have to find a way to win the contest. Here we could not do it, but we cannot keep playing with 10 every game.
“It’s up to us to react positively – this is why we are here. We are professionals, we demand a lot from each other so the next step is to fight back.”
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