Fulham hurt Arsenal title hopes as De Cordova-Reid seals fightback victory

The positive news for Arsenal was that they began 2024 only two points behind league leaders Liverpool. However, the downside was virtually everything else.

This period was anticipated to solidify their title aspirations—a crucial phase in which Mikel Arteta’s team could accumulate points to sustain them through the pivotal transition from winter to spring. Unfortunately, it exposed their major vulnerabilities, prompting serious questions about the realism of their credentials.

A defeat against a struggling Fulham side, which had previously lost their last three league games by a total score of 8-0, marked the conclusion of a busy December. Despite starting the month with narrow victories over Wolves and Luton, Arsenal managed only one win in the last six across all competitions. Perhaps a New Year’s resolution should be to forget the past few challenging weeks.

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As the season progressed, Arteta’s side appeared worryingly toothless in attack. In response, he chose to reintroduce Eddie Nketiah for only his second league start, replacing Gabriel Jesus. Unfortunately, Nketiah’s impact was negligible, with the team hitting the target just three times throughout the game and posing few questions to Bernd Leno. Calls to sign another forward in January intensified with each passing match.

For Fulham, their rollercoaster ride continued. Marco Silva’s team rebounded from a meager 10 goals in their opening 12 league fixtures by scoring 16 in the following four games. Despite a recent goal drought coinciding with Raúl Jiménez’s absence, the striker’s return, along with Bobby De Cordova-Reid’s contribution, secured a comeback victory after Bukayo Saka’s early opener.

Calvin Bassey’s outstanding performance at the heart of Fulham’s defense shut out almost everything Arsenal threw at them. Fulham, on this evidence, need not be concerned about the struggles of relegation-threatened teams beneath them.

Just six weeks ago, the idea of Jiménez becoming an unlikely goalscoring talisman in west London seemed laughable. However, after a dismal run of 33 goalless Premier League appearances, he unexpectedly scored five in his last seven.

Jiménez’s first-half equalizer, facilitated by a magnificent delivery from Tom Cairney, leveled the score at half-time. Arsenal had taken the lead within five minutes with a swift break that left opposition supporters questioning how it happened.

Despite a late effort by Arsenal to alter the outcome, including a spectacular save by Raya and a free-kick against the crossbar by Fulham’s Andreas Pereira, the gloomy mood among traveling fans was warranted. Fulham outplayed Arsenal, raising significant concerns for the team.