"Arsenal's Title Hopes in Jeopardy: Alarming Stats Reveal Pressure Mounting as Rivals Close In"

ARSENAL fans have seen this film before, and they didn’t like the ending.

A season packed with so much promise, seemingly when crunch time arrives.

Things appear to be falling apart for Mikel Arteta after his side were knocked out of the FA CupCredit: Shutterstock Editorial The ghost of Arsenal’s history of letting titles slip is beginning to loomCredit: Reuters

Saturday night’s defeat to Southampton was, by definition, a cup shock, but was anyone really that shocked by it?

have made a when the pressure ramps up and the noise gets louder.

It all feels very familiar for the fans, who bear the scars of their team’s previous shortcomings off the back of three consecutive second-place finishes and a six-year trophy drought.

Although this is the first time Arsenal have lost two games in a row all season, the stats show that the pressure is certainly getting to Mikel Arteta’s side.

In the 28 games the Gunners played from August to December, they made just one error leading to a goal.

But in their 23 games since January, they have given up EIGHT goals due to individual mistakes.

The last two, ’s mistimed header against Saints and ’s clanger, have proved hugely costly, cutting their hopes of a quadruple down to a double in the space of 180 minutes of .

Conversely, are kicking into gear.

’s side seem to have the minerals and the experience to flourish under pressure.

And have pulled off two of their best performances of the season for their Carabao Cup final victory over Arsenal and a in Saturday’s quarters.

Southampton doomed Arsenal’s FA Cup hopes with a late winner on SaturdayCredit: Getty

So you can forgive Arsenal fans for feeling like this form could spill into the league to give City the opportunity to breathe down their neck during the run-in.

However, Arsenal can still achieve something special this year, there’s no doubting that.

Their nine-point gap at the top of the Premier League is a cushy buffer, while they have been exceptional against European opposition in the .

But if they can’t handle this pressure then they will flutter away this lead the same way they did in previous years under Arteta.

Every game now feels like a cup final for Arsenal, which only invites more of the pressure that they seem to be crumbling under.

Arteta has thrown himself into the firing line in an attempt to protect his players from that outside noise.

The Arsenal boss claimed he would defend his players “now more than ever” and said that he takes responsibility for the drop off in form.

But it wasn’t the Spaniard who made White gift an opener on Saturday night, nor did he cause and to clatter into each other to drop two crucial points against Wolves last month.

Outside of any kind of mental fragility, it also seems like teams have found a way to beat Arsenal.

Simply put, the opposition have started to attack Arteta’s side.

Southampton were fearless from the off at St Mary’s, while Man City dominated the second half of the cup final by pinning Arsenal in their own half.

Arsenal felt like an inevitable force earlier in the campaign, so defensively secure and ruthless from set pieces that they would always find a way to win.

Now they look devoid of attacking ideas, with 16-year-old the only forward showing any leadership in the late stages of Saturday’s defeat.

Arteta has insisted that Arsenal’s defeats have been down to their own shortcomings, rather than what the opposition has been able to throw at them.

And that could well be true, given that the Gunners have now conceded four goals from the last six shots on target they have faced.

Compared to the one goal they have managed from 10 shots on target themselves.

But, something needs addressing, and if it isn’t, Arsenal could find themselves trophyless again in what would be nothing short of an unmitigated disaster for the Emirates outfit.

Arsenal will have to navigate a Champions League quarter-final against SportingCredit: Shutterstock Editorial

That starts with bouncing back against Sporting in Tuesday night’s Champions League quarter-final.

Arteta will have to wait and see who is available to him for that trip to Portugal, given that the Arsenal boss said “is not good news”.

He joins Jurrien Timber, , and Ebere Eze in a list of doubts for that game.

And Sporting are already smelling blood.

Winger Geny Catamo has said his side are confident of getting a result against the out-of-form Gunners.

He said: “The team is always confident when it comes to Champions League games, and even when it comes to a big team like Arsenal.

“That’s how I feel, even before the game against a team like Arsenal.”