Burnley - on the bus. Only on points

A narrow win in the last home game of the season

The starting line-up was exactly what every Arsenal fan had been waiting for all season: our five best creators combined, ready to destroy whatever stood in their way. However, after some intense huffing and puffing, a single set-piece goal was all we had to show for it when the half-time whistle blew.

Breaking down a compact, bottom-half opponent is always the hardest part; once you do, it usually becomes much easier to slice them open. Because of this, I expected us to add another couple of goals after the break. Unfortunately, that remained nothing but a dream.

I don’t think a 1-0 scoreline at home against a bottom-half team should be considered satisfactory. I understand that the primary objective is getting the three points, and ultimately that is what matters most. However, I would like to see the players look dissatisfied with such a narrow win, showing that they didn’t fully achieve what they set out to do.

Holding a single-goal lead is a slippery slope. A stray deflection, an accidental penalty, or a nasty tackle resulting in a red card—just like we saw yesterday—can instantly turn the result against you. A two-goal lead, on the other hand, gives us a comfortable cushion.

To be honest, I don’t know what Havertz was thinking with that tackle. Sliding in like that at the far end of the pitch was completely unnecessary, and we were incredibly lucky to escape with only a yellow card. I understand we had a reasonable shout for penatly before that, and I also doubt we would have crumbled even if we were reduced to ten men, but that still doesn’t give any reasons to risk it in the first place.

Now, any backup plan relying on goal difference is out the window; we can only win the title on pure points. City will finish with the better goal difference, meaning only a win against Palace on Sunday will be enough for us. To be fair, our recent fountain of 1-0 wins isn’t exactly injecting me with confidence ahead of the weekend. Furthermore, the narrative that Palace will play their reserves because of their upcoming Conference League final isn’t as positive a picture as some are painting.

In fact, I think Palace’s regular starters wouldn’t have given 100% on the pitch anyway, as they would be protecting themselves for the final. The reserves are a completely different story. This is a rare chance for them to prove themselves to the manager and, God forbid, carve out their own small piece of history. They will undoubtedly be hungrier, even if they are less experienced. It is, however, the one final hurdle separating our players from definitively making history.

As expected, City beat Chelsea in the FA Cup final. And just as we saw throughout the entire month of April, the result was helped along by the officials. Khusanov bundled into Chelsea players twice inside his own box—both times without getting anywhere near the ball—but the referee simply shrugged his shoulders. Meanwhile, VAR conveniently hid behind the “not a clear and obvious error” mantra.

That consistent assistance from the refereeing establishment is one of the main reasons I absolutely cannot stand that club. That, and their sheer arrogance. While Guardiola has earned the right to be arrogant over the course of his career, his players certainly haven’t. That lot are flattering themselves if they think they could achieve any of this without Pep.

It’s the exact same reason I have always hated Manchester United. During the Ferguson era, they worked hand-in-hand with the referees, who always seemed to side with them—including that absolute crime refereed by their associate Mike Riley, which assassinated our unbeaten run. I especially detest it when a team that is already the strongest, or one of the strongest, in the country receives additional help from the officials.

I used to ask myself whether my hatred was just driven by the fact that they were simply the better team—whether I was just jealous of their ability to destroy opponents on the pitch. But I think I know the answer now. I never hated Liverpool like that, not when they thrashed us 5-1, and not when they won the Champions League and the Premier League. I didn’t even hate them when they won the league in 25/26, because they were objectively the strongest team in the division. They were also one of the best teams in Europe, and I can accept that.

But cheating your way to a title? I’m not having it. Manchester City, Manchester United, Barcelona, Real Madrid—those clubs will never get anything from me but a wish to see them fail.

Why am I renting about this now? Because on Tuesday evening, the referees’ helping hand will undoubtedly be there again. Bournemouth will need to put in a truly dominant performance to take points off City. I’m not saying they can’t do it—in their current form, they can absolutely cause trouble for anyone, and who knows that better than us! However, if it’s a tight, equal game, the advantage will inevitably be handed to the poor little club from the North.

Luckily, we remain in a position where we can decide our own destiny. There is only one final step remaining, one last 90-minute stretch. Arteta’s motivational speech should be incredibly easy this time: Leave every single thing you have on that pitch. Every ounce of focus, every duel, every recovery sprint to stop an opponent, every lung-bursting run forward to get on the end of a cross. Make absolutely sure there isn’t a single moment of lost concentration, doubt, or laziness—because if there is, you will regret it for the rest of your lives.