Arsenal miss a chance to tighten their grip on the Premier League title race, yet Noni Madueke stresses that the squad must reset quickly, keep focus on the bigger picture and prepare for an upcoming Champions League meeting with Inter after dropping points at Nottingham Forest.
The goalless draw at the City Ground follows Manchester City’s defeat to Manchester United, which gave Arsenal an opening to move nine points clear. Instead, the lead at the top stands at seven points, with Aston Villa able to trim that margin to four if Aston Villa win on Sunday.
Despite the stalemate, Opta’s supercomputer still rates Arsenal as strong favourites for the Premier League title, giving Mikel Arteta’s squad an 86.7% chance of lifting a first league crown
since 2004. The same model also puts Arsenal top of the Champions League projections, at 26% likelihood of becoming European champions.
Arsenal created the better chances against Nottingham Forest, but lacked a cutting edge. Matz Sels denied Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Jesus with two sharp saves, while Gabriel Martinelli failed to convert from close range. Nottingham Forest offered little attacking threat, yet Arsenal were unable to turn pressure into a decisive breakthrough.
"It's disappointing to draw, for sure, Madueke told the club's website. We weren't clinical enough in front of goal. I think they didn't have a chance, really, at all; they didn't really do anything to our goal. We weren't clinical, but we take a point, and we move on. We wanted to win the game; we didn't achieve that. It's disappointing in that sense, but it's a point we take on the road, and we regroup. We've got an important clash versus Inter in the Champions League, which we'll go into trying to win. There is a long way to go. We know that we've been very consistent, and we'll continue to do so. We're in four competitions, so we literally play, recover, play, recover, play. So, it's a lot of games, but that's the beauty of playing in England. "
Madueke underlines that the campaign stretches across four competitions, which means a constant cycle of matches and recovery. Arsenal now balance domestic pressure with Champions League ambitions, using consistency as a key message inside the dressing room while the club’s position in both the Premier League and Europe remains strong.
For Arsenal’s followers in the Middle East and beyond, the draw at Nottingham Forest slows momentum but does not change the wider outlook. The statistics still favour Arteta’s side in both Premier League and Champions League, provided Arsenal respond with sharper finishing and maintain discipline through a demanding fixture list.
