Arsenal's Title Hopes Take Dent as Brentford Prove Too Physical in Frustrating Draw

Arsenal's title credentials took another battering on Thursday evening as Brentford held them to a 1-1 stalemate at the Gtech Community Stadium, leaving the Gunners vulnerable as Manchester City continue their relentless pursuit.

Noni Madueke's impressive header put Arsenal in front during the 61st minute, but the lead lasted just ten minutes before Keane Lewis-Potter powered home a leveller for the Bees. With Keith Andrews' side eyeing a European berth, it was Brentford who looked the more likely winners as the match wore on.

The result proved costly for Mikel Arteta's men. Manchester City's 3-0 demolition of Fulham on Wednesday had already applied pressure, and now the gap has narrowed to just four points with Arsenal still chasing their first league crown since 2004.

The performance has sparked genuine concern among the pundit class about whether Arsenal possess the necessary character for a title push. Former Chelsea and Tottenham defender Jason Cundy acknowledged the concerns whilst maintaining some optimism on talkSPORT: "Once it went to 1-1, there was only one side that looked more likely to score the winner… and it wasn't Arsenal. The more likely of the two sides was Brentford. Probably a fair result… I thought Brentford were the better side. They outplayed Arsenal tonight. They kind of bullied Arsenal tonight and you don't ever see Arsenal get bullied."

Yet Cundy stopped short of writing off the Gunners entirely, insisting: "You're never going to win the Premier League easily, very few teams do. I still think they're the best side and will win it, but I'm not as convinced as I was that they'd win it."

Ex-Tottenham midfielder Jamie O'Hara took a far dimmer view of proceedings, dismissing Arsenal's display in unsparing terms: "They were garbage tonight. You can't get away from the fact that Arsenal were terrible. And let's be honest, they haven't been great for weeks. They score set pieces, and they've had a couple of decent results here and there. I know they're at the top of the table, but in terms of performances from a championship winning team, I'm not convinced."

When Cundy suggested he was being harsh, O'Hara doubled down: "I feel like you're being very generous to Arsenal. I feel like you're giving them more credit than I think they deserve."