Lethargic Arsenal blew the chance to end the year to top the table after succumbing to a 2-1 defeat to Fulham at Craven Cottage.
The Arsenal Manager Mikel Arteta admitted that this is the worse performance by his side this season, with his side ending 2023 with back-to- back defeat.
The Gunners had taken the lead at Craven Cottage through Bukayo Saka, but Raul Jimenez and Bobby Decordova-Reid turned the match around for the hosts.
The win sees Fulham, who end a run of three straight defeats without scoring a goal, move up to 13th on the table.
Meanwhile, Arsenal, who were top of the table on Christmas Day, have just one win in their last five games in the league.
The defeat caps a disappointing few days as they finished the year fourth and missed out on a second chance to go top of the Premier League, leaving Liverpool with an opportunity to go three points clear when they face Newcastle on New Year’s Day.
Arteta said: “We weren’t good enough, simple as that. We lost a game a few days ago that we deserved to win but today we were nowhere near the level.
“You have to play 100 mins in this league, it is a really sad day because we didn’t deserve to win the game.
“To try to change the dynamic of the game for sure, to have more threat but we didn’t get going because we gave every game away. It was difficult to create any momentum.
“The way we conceded the goals today, this is football and credit to Fulham as well. We had a great performance against Liverpool and West Ham but we didn’t win.
“Today is the one you have to isolate as it was the worst of the season.”
The Arsenal boss, when quizzed about the possibility of a January transfer to enable them achieve their target this season, played down the chance of signings, as he claimed the club would continue to play “with the same players.”
The loss against Fulham sees Arsenal remain two points behind Premier League leaders Liverpool and Aston Villa, as well as remaining level on points with reigning champions Man City.
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