Arsenal is in a tight Premier League title race with Manchester City, following a recent loss. The atmosphere at Emirates Stadium is under scrutiny as the team prepares for crucial home matches against Newcastle and Fulham.
Key points
Arsenal and Manchester City are close in the Premier League title race.
Arsenal lost 2-1 to Manchester City on April 19.
Arsenal has upcoming home games against Newcastle and Fulham.
The atmosphere at Emirates Stadium is under scrutiny.
Both teams have almost identical records with five games remaining.
Pep Guardiola's men face a Southampton side that beat Arsenal in the previous round in Saturday's FA Cup semifinal, meaning they are not back in action until a May 4 trip to Everton.
In the meantime, Arsenal have back-to-back home games against Newcastle and Fulham – a chance to establish some breathing space and put the pressure back on City.
But is home advantage all you would like it to be at the business end of the season? More specifically, with supporters clearly desperate to see Arsenal's 22-year wait for a league title end, has the Emirates Stadium crowd and atmosphere become a problem for Mikel Arteta's team?
Injured Real Madrid star will be ready and available for the World Cup – Romano
Injured Real Madrid star Arda Guler will be fit for the World Cup.
Yahoo Sports··1 min read
Sports
Romano drops major Friday morning update on Man Utd & Carrick: “Serious, serious possibility”
Michael Carrick is reportedly close to being appointed as the permanent head coach of Manchester United. This follows his interim role after the dismissal of Ruben Amorim.
See every story in Sports — including breaking news and analysis.
Tyler Adams: Emirates Stadium is 'difficult environment' for Arsenal
A week before they lost to City, Bournemouth dealt an unexpected blow to Arsenal's title hopes when they stunned the Gunners with a deserved 2-1 win at Emirates Stadium.
Speaking to Men In Blazers this week, United States midfielder Tyler Adams said he felt the trepidation in the hearts of the home supporters during that match.
"We told ourselves before the game we had to put ourselves in their shoes," the USMNT captain said. "They have a whole lot to play for. We have a lot to play for but it's a different circumstance when you're chasing a title. We knew it was probably going to be a little bit nervy, and if one thing goes wrong, and the fans start getting a little bit anxious, and I think we played into that occasion.
"But it just takes one little error, one little mistake, and the fans get a little bit nervy. That’s a difficult atmosphere to play in and thrive in when you’re trying to chase a championship, because we talk about them like they're not sitting first in the table still. As an opposition, it's the best thing to hear. When you're playing an away game and all of a sudden it feels like the momentum is swinging and it feels like a home game.
"At certain moments in the game, I heard our fans celebrating or cheering and it was like: why's it so quiet in here? They're trying to chase a title, we're trying to chase potentially finishing in a European position, but it feels like we're playing for a little bit more in the circumstances. I think it can be really difficult when you’re in an environment like that."
Suggestions that the more rabid elements of Arsenal's fanbase are more of a hindrance than a help are nothing new, while a sense that the weight of anxious expectation at Emirates Stadium can become crushing has built over recent years. This is usually the preserve of fan and pundit chatter. The fact that a player such as Adams, who has experienced it on the field first hand during a match where some Arsenal fans booed at the full-time whistle, means it's perhaps worth further exploration.
Is the Emirates Stadium atmosphere a problem for Arsenal?
If we look at the simple numbers from this season, Arsenal have no problem playing at home whatsoever. Their record of 12 wins, two draws and two defeats in the Premier league can only be bettered by (yes…) Manchester City, so far this term. And Pep Guardiola's men are only fractionally better off, with an equal 12 wins but three draws and one loss.
The defeat to Bournemouth comes within the context of the Cherries under Andoni Iraola becoming something of a bogey side for his fellow Basque Arteta. It was their third win in the past four editions of the fixture, which perhaps explains the overwrought calls from both the club's online channels and the manager for fans to bring the noise. The only palpable effect of this was to increase the tension that Adams noted.
Getty Images
It will be intriguing to see whether Arsenal employ similar tactics to whip up an atmosphere against Newcastle on Saturday, given it backfired so clearly last time. The later kick-off time, 5:30 p.m BST as opposed to the earlier 12:30 p.m. BST versus Bournemouth, means they shouldn't have to. Not to place too much emphasis on British football fans' reputation for enjoying a little liquid refreshment, but crowds at later kickoffs tend to be a little more full-throated.
Additionally, Newcastle and Fulham are not in notable form and each have dreadful records at Emirates Stadium. Newcastle won both legs of last season's Carabao Cup semifinal against Arsenal, but their 1-0 win thanks to an Andy Carroll header in November 2010 is the only Premier League victory either club boasts at the Gunners' current home ground. Fulham have drawn two of their past four visits to the Emirates and another sharing of the spoils would be a dreadful outcome for Arteta's team at this stage.
Arsenal home record in title races
Even if the raw numbers are in Arsenal's favour, a look at the their consecutive second-place finishes over the past three seasons gives cause for concern.
Arteta's squad was still very much in the development stage when they claimed 50 points from the first 19 matches in 2022/23, only to collapse as City embarked upon a successful treble charge.
The Gunners actually had a better away record than City that season, taking 39 points on the road to 37 for Guardiola's men. However, City won 17 of their 19 home games to claim 52 points at the Etihad Stadium. Arsenal collected seven fewer at the Emirates, with their 45 also coming in below Manchester United's 48 at Old Trafford.
Arsenal won eight and drew two of their first 10 home league matches that season before suffering a 3-1 loss to City. The 4-1 defeat at the Etihad was probably the defining loss of the title run-in from a north London vantage point, but a chaotic 3-3 draw at home to Southampton prior to that did not help matters. The 3-0 collapse against Brighton in their penultimate home game effectively put blue and white ribbons on the trophy and was the sort of afternoon that feels emblematic of Arsenal's springtime struggles.
Leon Bailey
Leon Bailey
Getty Images
In 2023/24, they pushed City to the final day, missing out by 89 points to 91 in the final analysis. Arsenal also matched their rivals' 47 home points. However, a 2-0 April 14 defeat to an excellent Aston Villa side was the day when the title ultimately got away.
Last season, Arsenal never got close enough to suffer such acute pain as Liverpool waltzed to glory. Still, despite finishing second overall, their home record was only the fifth-best in the division — 11 wins and 39 points overall coming in behind Liverpool, City, Chelsea and Villa.
After Newcastle and Fulham, Arsenal still have one more home game, with relegated Burnley's trip to the Emirates looking an utter formality and a chance to finesse goal difference. The challenge is to ensure neither of the Newcastle or Fulham matches joins Southampton, Brighton, Villa or Bournemouth in the Gunners' recent hall of infamy on home soil.
The 60,000 in attendance being abundantly aware of this context means nerves are inevitable. Arsenal should win all three of their remaining Premier League home games to keep up the fight for a long-awaited title. But, as Tyler Adams said, it just takes one little error, one little mistake…
