Is Arsenal still a Premier League title contender?
The well that kept giving early on in the 2013-14 season has seemingly run dry. The Gunners have now gone four straight games without a win and have completely lost ground in the Premier League.
For the record, the team has gone three without a win in England; the other game was a 2-0 loss at Napoli that forced them into a Champions League round of 16 matchup with Bayern Munich. Now that that tournament looks like a lost cause, Arsenal was expected to make a more concerted effort to win the Premier League. Instead, the team has continued to slide out of first place, going three games without a win. The 1-1 draw against Everton was the result of a blown 1-0 lead. The 6-3 loss against Manchester City was a humbling reminder that a title run is not easy.
The 0-0 draw against Chelsea could not have come at a worse time.
With Liverpool atop the standings thanks to a terrific run from Luis Suarez, Arsenal was in dire need of a win. But the heroes of the start of the season have all faded. Mesut Ozil rarely made a key pass. Olivier Giroud missed two key chances to score a decisive goal. And Aaron Ramsey was invisible throughout. Arsene Wenger, who was astute throughout the early part of the year, failed to make a single substitution in the entire match.
Arsenal looked lost for a way to break down Chelsea's disciplined defense and failed to record a shot on goal for the first hour of the game.
This three-game stretch, all against top teams, has shown Arsenal that it still has a long way to go before it can claim the title.