It was good while it lasted, but Arsenal are out of the title race for the third straight year, after a goalless draw against third-placed Nottingham Forest. The Gunners had a misfortune that this season, Liverpool is playing like Manchester City in their best days and will eventually win the title, but Mikel Arteta‘s men had some bad days themselves.The general feeling is that the number of injuries (nobody‘s fault) and the bad January transfer window (Edu and Arteta‘s fault) are the main reasons why Arsenal will finish second again. Tonight they faced a team who is the surprise of the season in England, but who is in the result crisis at the moment (three defeats from the last four, including conceding four goals in 11 minutes against Newcastle on Sunday) and still failed to beat them.They played with a proper striker (all injured, haven‘t bought any) and faced a rock-solid defense. With another draw and Liverpool‘s comfortable win against Newcastle, the difference between the Reds and Arsenal is now 13 points (but the Gunners have a game in hand) and the race is all but over.2 – Arsenal have failed to score in back-to-back Premier League games (vs West Ham and Nottingham Forest) for the first time since May 2023 (vs Brighton and Forest). Blank. pic.twitter.com/zRzB430GVq— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) February 26, 2025 It was 22nd minute when quick Hudson-Odoi again passed on Calafiori and burst into the penalty area. The Italian caught up with him and made a contact but it was just enough for referee not to point to the spot. Two minutes later the Italian had the best chance of the first half, when he took a great shot to the bottom right corner. It hit the inside of the right post and rebounded into the grateful arms of Sels.Forrest didn‘t do anything in the first half, and that trend continued in the second half. That was a problem for the visitors, who had taught time to break to a stout Forest‘s defense and Calafiori‘s chance remained the only one for a long time. Only in the 51st minute did Arsenal created the second best chance of the game. Rice’s deep corner was met by the unmarked Merino, whose header from a close range went straight at the Forest goalkeeper. The hosts finally had a chance in the 70th minute, when their best striker Chris Wood‘s shot was parried by Raya.”As Arsenal doesn’t have a striker… there’s no need for an extra body” 👀Nuno Espírito Santo’s brutal honesty silences Martin Keown 🤐🎙️ @Julesbreach pic.twitter.com/E28ot0a7bj— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) February 26, 2025 The game heated up even more in the second half, with Arsenal pushing their lines closer to the home team’s goal, leaving a lot of space in their own half as a result. It’s incredible how Forest failed to take advantage of this, despite having plenty of opportunities—none of which they even managed to turn into a clear-cut chance. The best one was squandered by Chris Wood, who had a one-on-one counterattack but, true to his last name, the ball bounced off his foot as he tried to set up for a shot, and the opportunity was lost. In the end, statistics don’t really matter to anyone, but the fact that Nottingham Forest managed just two shots on target at home in 90 minutes clearly shows who has more reason to be disappointed after this goalless draw.PREMIER LEAGUE – MATCHDAY 27TuesdayBrighton – Bournemouth 2-1 (1-0)/Pedro 12 pen, Welbeck 75 – Kluivert 61/Crystal Palace – Aston Villa 4-1 (1-0)/Sarr 29, 71, Mateta 59, Nketiah 90+1 – Rogers 52/Wolverhampton – Fulham 1-2 (1-1)/Gomes 18 – Sessegnon 1, Muniz 47/Chelsea – Southampton 4-0 (3-0)/Nkunku 24, Neto 36, Colwill 44, Cucurella 78/Wednesday Brentford – Everton 1-1 (1-0)/Wissa 45+4 – O’Brien 77/Manchester United – Ipswich 3-2 (2-2)/Morsy 22 og, De Ligt 26, Maguire 47 – Philogene 4, Jaden 45+2/Nottingham Forest – Arsenal 0-0Tottenham – Manchester City 0-1 (0-1)/Haaland 12/Liverpool – Newcastle 2-0 (1-0)/Szoboszlai 11, McAllister 63/Thursday 23.00: (1.65) West Ham (4.00) Leicester (5.25)***odds are subject to change***
