David Raya insisted Arsenal “have to stick together” in the Premier League title race after they dropped points in a 1-1 draw at Brentford.
Noni Madueke had put Arsenal in front just after the hour, sending a looping header past the wrong-footed Caoimhin Kelleher, but Keane Lewis-Potter profited from a long throw at the other end to thump in an equaliser.
And Arsenal were far from their best, managing just two shots on target at the Gtech Community Stadium. Gabriel Martinelli could have won it late on, though, but he was thwarted by Kelleher.
Following the full-time whistle in the Gunners’ last game, they had a nine-point lead at the top, but Manchester City have since won twice, with the gap now sitting at just four.
But Raya was quick to highlight that Arsenal remain in control at the summit, despite the frustrating result.
“Disappointed with just a point. We stick together,” he told TNT Sports. “It’s a tough place to come, but we just have to stick together, and we are still in a great position, and we go again.
“It [the first-half performance] felt fine. We dominated most of the first half until they got momentum. We dealt with it very well and scored the goal in the second half.
“I thought that was going to be enough, but they played dangerous on set-pieces, and we conceded. We had the chances to win the game, but we didn’t maximise them.
“We are still in a great position. We have to focus on ourselves. We have the FA Cup on Sunday, but we go again on Wednesday [against Wolves].”
Arsenal’s 0.6 expected goals (xG) was their third-lowest in a Premier League game this season, behind their games with Liverpool in August (0.5 xG) and January (0.6 xG).
Madueke’s opener came from their first shot on target in the 61st minute – only against Wolves in December (68th minute) have the Gunners waited longer in a league game in 2025-26.
Brentford bettered Arsenal’s shot count, having 12 to their seven, with the visitors also only managing one ‘big’ opportunity to the Bees’ three, and Mikel Arteta admitted his side were lacking an edge in the final third.
“The game had moments,” Arteta told BBC Sport. “We started without the control and dominance we wanted, but after that, we got the rhythm and had situations to score.
“We started the second half brilliantly. We scored the goal, and then we controlled the game, but after that, the game became chaotic. The moment you start to give away one or two free-kicks, the ball goes into the channels in can go out for a throw, and then it is a nightmare.
“They can throw the ball from anywhere on the pitch. You get into that game, and it is very difficult to get out.
“They are one of the best historically in the league [from set-pieces], and they have developed this year with the long throw. It is a real threat and difficult to defend.
“We were giving free-kicks away, you cannot do [that]. We should have had more composure to play through them.
“We wanted to win, so we feel like we dropped two points. They are very difficult. We keep going.”
