FA Premier League
ARSENAL 1 (Gyokeres 35 pen)
AFC BOURNEMOUTH 2 (Kroupi 17, Scott 74)

BOURNEMOUTH are a troublesome team, well-drilled and thoughtful – always energetic.

But it’s a fair shout: if you want to win the Premier League, you have to beat teams like Bournemouth at home. Arsenal didn’t, and blinked further by losing this glorious opportunity to nudge closer to the champions’ finishing line.

However good the guests were, this result and the manner in which it was reached will have alarm bells ringing about the prospect of another near-miss season in which elusive silverware was well within reach but not claimed.

Just like the Carabao Cup final against Manchester City and an FA Cup exit to Championship team Southampton, this can’t really be put down as a hard-luck story. The visitors more or less deserved their three points, and Arsenal’s toothless team only pierced the net with the aid of a penalty.

Gunners boss Mikel Arteta has few mitigating excuses left but was defiant after, insisting that his side would respond positively. They have not lost the title race, but he needs to find a way to change the gloomy momentum.

Asked what he would say to the disappointed supporters: “Apologise. Take it on the chin – and that’s it. What I’m trying to do is give our best to the club, give the best possibility to our players, and I know if the atmosphere, the fans, the support, the energy in the stadium is the best in the world we have a much better chance…. We have to respond and we had moments in the first half where we did it and there were other moments that we weren’t at our level. So then we have to apologise to them and improve, soon.”

What was clearly frustrating the home support was a feeling that the urgency felt in the stands to make a big leap forward in the attempt to hold off the ominous threat of Manchester City did not seem to translate to what they were seeing on the pitch. Minutes in a match that many felt had to be won slipped away with David Raya’s studs on the ball or protracted exchanges of passes on the edge of the box. It seemed casual, almost complacent.

Arteta’s approach remains ultra-cautious, the ball rarely put at risk via a dribble – but the passing method lacks any fizz or penetration. The chat in the stands around the press box was some honest admissions from fans that they haven’t actually enjoyed many matches this season. Golden goals and sweeping victories have been a premium offering.

It was clear this one wasn’t going to be a bundle of laughs from the moment EJ Kroupi had opened the scoring on 17 minutes, capitalising on a touch of misfortune when Adrien Truffert’s cross looped up off William Saliba and into the path of the French striker. It was an easy take for Kroupi, but the inquest will centre on how easily Truffert broke clear.

Arteta was right that Arsenal responded with a bit more bite, but Gabriel Martinelli continues to be wasteful on the wing. He can run faster than most, but the crosses are often wayward, while his finishing is a sore point after misses that might have won matches at Nottingham Forest and Brentford. Noni Madueke has put in similar performances, which surely could be coached out of him.

Unable to score from open play, Arsenal’s equaliser came ten minutes before half-time through a penalty, tucked away smartly by Viktor Gyokeres. It had been won from a handball committed by Ryan Christie amid some penalty-area confusion from a corner.

Like last week against Southampton, this lifeline from the Swedish forward should have been the start of a push to get a victory which would have meant a 12-point lead at the top. Remember City have two in hand and play Arsenal at home still, and Arsenal didn’t win this one.

It was no springboard. More caution and dithering in the second half set the tone again. Given the circumstances, you might have expected a deluge on the Cherries’ goal, but in truth there were very few moments where the away fans will have been sweating. Corners were swung in, but the goal rush they brought in the autumn and winter has been drying up.

Arsenal only really seemed to be on mission mode when they fell behind. The “punch to the face”, as Arteta called it, came with 15 minutes to go. Adam Scott was able to send Raya diving the wrong way after a couple of simple passes unlocked the home defence to open up the match-winning opportunity.

Suddenly, there was some urgency and shots flew at the Bournemouth goal, but the game was hurtling to an embarrassing defeat.

ARSENAL: Raya, White (Mosquera 74), Lewis-Skelly, Saliba, Gabriel, Rice, Zubimendi (Gabriel Jesus 74), Havertz (Eze 54), Madueke (Dowman 54), Martinelli (Trossard 54), Gyokeres
SUBS NOT USED: Hincapie, Norgaard, Salmon, Arrizabalaga

AFC BOURNEMOUTH: Petrovic, Jimenez (Smith 90), Truffert, Senesi, Hill, Christie (Adams 70), Scott, Tavernier, Rayan (Brooks 70), Kroupi (Toth 85), Evanilson (Unai 90)
SUBS NOT USED: Adli, Diakite, Doak, Mandas