Arsenal: Now the pressure is on Premier League

Arsenal crashed out of the Europa League in humiliating fashion on Thursday night. The defeat really puts the pressure on their Premier League matches now.

As Arsenal slumped out of European competition in February in truly humiliaiting fashion for the umpteenth time, the disastrous consequence of the calamity arrived home: they are facing another year without Champions League football and might even miss out on European football altogether.

Listen to the latest episode of the Pain in the Arsenal podcast here! — Emergency Podcast: Nightmare

Winning the Europa League and sneaking into Europe’s elite competition next season was always viewed as a backdoor way of qualifying. But in reality, given where the Gunners stood in the Premier League and the quality of the teams left in the Europa League, it was their more likely route.

More from Pain in the Arsenal

• 3 standout players from 1-0 victory over Everton
• 3 positives & negatives from Goodison Park victory
• Arsenal vs PSV preview: Prediction, team news & lineups
• 3 talking points from Arsenal’s victory at Goodison Park
• Mikel Arteta provides Gabriel Martinelli injury update after Everton win

In fact, prior to the Round of 32, Arsenal were the favourites to win the Europa League, with only Inter Milan, Manchester United, Wolves, and a smattering of other teams believed to be capable of challenging them. How wrong we all were? And so, with the Europa League now done and dusted at such an early stage, the hard truth is rising to the surface: the pressure is really on the Premier League.

Mikel Arteta’s side have shown great progress under his management. There is a greater tactical definition, the team is more cohesive and well connected, there is a growing belief that the Spaniard is building something that the players, coaches, fans and entire club can get on board with. As a result of this improvement, they have steadily climbed into the top half of the Premier League and into the race for the Champions League places. But they still have ground to make up.

With Manchester City set to be banned from European competition for the next two seasons, although that ruling is under appeal, the fifth-placed team will qualify for the Champions League as long as City finish in the top four, which they almost certainly will. This could be the saving grace for the Gunners.

Arsenal currently sit in ninth position. They are seven points behind fourth-placed Chelsea and four points behind fifth-placed Manchester United, with Spurs, Sheffield United and Wolves in between. It is a tightly congested part of the table, especially if you consider Burnley as a threat who currently sit on the same number of points as the north London outfit.

The Gunners have a kind run of fixtures upcoming, with very winnable games versus West Ham, Brighton, Southampton and Norwich on the horizon. But then the difficult period begins: Wolves, Leicester, a critical north London derby, Liverpool, and a re-arranged match against Manchester City somewhere in the mix. Arsenal will be in the running if they win the easy four upcoming, but their top-five fate will be determined by the results in the tough five — they likely need to win three of those games, including both the Wolves and Spurs tilts.

While Arteta’s side are officially in the top-five race, they are lagging behind and need a near-perfect run to close out the season. Are they capable? Based on their recent improvements, yes. But there is little margin for error, and after their Europa League capitulation, the pressure is really on.