Arsenal defeat to Man City could derail rest of Gunners’ season

Analysis

Arsenal looked flat against Manchester City in the League Cup Final, to put it lightly.

The Gunners put their stamp on the game for the first 30 minutes or so, but beyond that, it was all Man City, who ended up winning 2-0.

Arsenal held onto the 0-0 scoreline until halftime and for 15 minutes after the break, but City got the breakthrough via Nico O’Reilly on the hour mark thanks to a mistake from Arsenal goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga, and the newly-21-year-old midfielder/left-back doubled his and his team’s tally four minutes later.

The North London side could hardly get out of their own half after the break, and the performance exposed the fine margins that Mikel Arteta’s team has played with for much of the season.

If they are not careful, this cup final defeat could derail the rest of Arsenal’s season.

Defeat could crush Arsenal’s confidence

For most of the match, Arsenal did not play like a team that expected to go toe-to-toe with Man City.

The Gunners sat in their own end, providing plenty of time for their opponents on the ball. It was nothing like the early stages, when the clubs looked mostly even, much less the 5-1 Arsenal victory over City in the Premier League 13 months ago.

The question now is how much this sort of performance will impact the team’s confidence. At times, Arsenal looked like the type of club they face so often, one that sits back in a low block and is happy to play for a draw in the league.

But a draw was out of the question, and anyway, Arsenal — with four wins and a draw in its last five matches — had more momentum than City with their one win in five heading into this match.

This match and performance will likely be ringing in the Arsenal players’ heads over the next month, until the teams meet again in the league on April 19.

Arsenal can either use this Carabao Cup defeat as motivation, or it could derail their hopes of winning the three competitions they are still in: the FA Cup, Champions League, and Premier League.

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