Arteta urges Arsenal to ‘stand up’ after title bid rocked by Wolves draw

Mikel Arteta applauds the fans following the English Premier League football match between Wolverhampton Wanderers and Arsenal at the Molineux stadium in Wolverhampton, central England on Wednesday. Photo: Paul ELLIS / AFP Mikel Arteta admitted Arsenal deserve criticism for the self-inflicted wounds that threaten to ruin their Premier League title bid after the leaders blew a two-goal lead in Wednesday’s 2-2 draw at rock-bottom Wolves. But Arteta’s side were caught cold in the closing stages at snowy Molineux, giving second-placed Manchester City renewed hope in the title race.

Hugo Bueno’s superb strike reduced the deficit before teenage debutant Tom Edozie punished a mix-up between Arsenal goalkeeper David Raya and centre-back Gabriel Magalhaes to equalise deep into stoppage-time. For a second successive league game, the Gunners had failed to hold onto a lead following their 1-1 draw at Brentford last Thursday. City are just five points behind Arsenal and have a game in hand on their rivals, as well as a home game against the Gunners in April.

“Incredibly disappointed. We need to accept it. We need to be critical of ourselves because it was not good enough,” Arteta said.

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“In the league, it is the reality that we have not been consistent over the last few months.” Having wasted commanding leads in two previous title fights with City, Arteta’s men are in danger of being haunted by the ghost of their past failures. The north Londoners have dropped 11 points in eight league games in 2026. Clearly furious with Arsenal’s failure to finish off a Wolves team with just one win in 27 league games this season, Arteta struggled to keep his emotions in check.

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