Freddie Ljungberg addresses Arsenal ‘bottlers’ label after ‘tough’ Man City loss

Arsenal legend Freddie Ljungberg admits defeat to Manchester City is a big psychological blow which will be tough for his former team to recover from.

The Gunners suffered a huge setback in the Premier League title race on Sunday as they were beaten 2-1 by their closest rivals at the Etihad.

Rayan Cherki opened the scoring with a brilliant early goal, before Kai Havertz equalised with a bizarre one just two minutes later.

The German charged down City goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma and the Italian’s attempted clearance spooned into the back of the net.

There was not much in it and both teams created chances, but Erling Haaland completed the scoring on 65 minutes, finishing off a counter-attack in typically ruthless fashion.

Arsenal had a chance to draw level again at the death but Havertz put his free header in the penalty box over the bar.

Mikel Arteta’s team remains three points clear at the top of the table, but Manchester City have a game in hand and can leapfrog the Gunners if they win at Burnley on Wednesday.

Ljungberg, who won two Premier League titles with Arsenal, admits the loss will be a hard one to take mentally and the prospect of another failed title race will be difficult for the players to deal with.

‘I think it will be big,’ the Swede told ViaPlay when asked how big a psychological blow the defeat will be for Arsenal.

‘Of course they’re professional football players and they have to deal with it. But they’ve been on top for so, so long and they’ve had history from different seasons, been called “bottlers”.

‘Obviously I live in London, they’ve been talking about this now for the last two or three weeks. Their fans have been worried, it’s been a talking point.

‘It’s tough for them, but at the same time, you have to switch on and hope City drop points somewhere. The main thing is you concentrate on your own game, you take the points that’s needed if City slip up. But what City did today, I was impressed.’

Manchester United legend Peter Schmeichel, who also played for Manchester City at the end of his career, feels Arsenal are failing to bridge the experience gap to their rivals when it comes to winning titles.

There now is a very real chance that Arteta’s side will finish second for the fourth season on the bounce.

‘The experience in this period is everything,’ said the iconic goalkeeper. ‘Understanding that even if there is a little bump here and there, you can still win it.

‘Arsenal don’t have it. It’s four consecutive years they find themselves in this situation and they still haven’t managed to get it over the line.’

The Gunners still have five Premier League games to play and there remains the chance that the destination of the title could come down to goal difference.

After City go to Burnley on Wednesday night, Arsenal are next in action at home against Newcastle on Saturday evening.