Mikel Arteta spoke to the BBC: “Today was our worst game of the season. The pace, the purpose we have in attack, defensively we were second best, we could not dominate and had issues because of that. “We were sloppy with the ball. It wasn’t good enough. We didn’t deserve to win. When you have opportunities to go top of league on 31 December and now end up with really bad feeling that is football. The lines are really thin. “If we play like we played in the other 19 games we will be up there. If we play like today we will be nowhere near. Today was a really difficult day to swallow.” Declan Rice spoke to Sky: “Declan Rice: “There’s been a blip in the road. There’s no need to panic, there’s still so many games to go. We need to stay positive. This is not the time to be negative. We’ve got a great manager, a great set of players and we will keep going.” Marco Silva spoke to the BBC: “Really the best way to finish 2023, definitely. Our ambition was to finish on a high and react from the last two games. I really believe we deserve it. Over the 95 minutes we deserved it more. “It was very good reaction after the first goal. The way we beat their pressure and began to play our way. We even had more chances to score a third goal. Tom Cairney spoke to Sky Sports: “We have been great at home, not so good away. We were very disappointed with the Boxing Day performance and wanted to make a statement today. We were on top form. To react the way we did to going a goal behind was very good.” Ben Bloom was at Craven Cottage. Phillip Haran gets in touch: “Man City tried to give everybody a head start while they went off to collect another trophy so what does t he competition do? They all lose or draw of course to set up the fourth title for Man City. It’s now a virtual certainty as all the so called leading chasers lose a few players to the African Cup of Nations. City will have the title wrapped up by Easter. Happy New Year to all.” Yeah, cheers, Phil. Full-time: Fulham 2-1 Arsenal Arsenal lose another London derby and much of their title credentials. Marco Silva pulls off a coup. Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal were poor beyond their goal and lost deservedly to an inspired Fulham. 90+5 min: Trossard whips the ball into the air in the manner of a shanked rugby garryowen. That’s surely it. Arteta looks resigned to his fate. And that’s what he must accept. Fulham have done it. 90+4 min: Fulham retreating at last? Arsenal are desperate but struggling for chances. One corner is cleared behind, Saka will take again, 90+2 min: Jimenez is booked for kicking the ball away as Harrison Reed comes on to replace Tom Cairney, who won man of the match. 90 min: Five minutes added on and Saka looks incapable of seeing them out with two tired swings at the ball. 89 min: Saka asks his teammates to move as he takes a corner. That ends up going down the other end of the field for a couple of dangerous counters. Arteta glowers on the sidelines. He’s not at all happy. 88 min: OOF. Pereira’s kick bounces back off the crossbar. 87 min: Saliba pulls down Wilson. He gets a yellow. It could have been red, though that might have been harsh. The Fulham fans want a red. 85 min: Pereira sends Cairney away and it’s Jesus who has to run all the way back to clear up. Arsenal are somewhat shapeless. Arteta’s attacking masterplan has let him down. 84 min: Jimenez, a man renewed, escapes down the channel and forces a corner. That comes out and Harry Wilson can only drag the ball wide. 82 min: Just a glimmer for Arsenal as Saka escapes and Palhinha pulls off an almighty tackle, one he celebrates with a fist-pump. 80 min: Two Fulham changes: Off go Willian and De Cordova-Reid, on come Wilson and Issa Diop. Arsenal almost get back into it as Gabriel chucks himself at a cross, using the wet pitch to slide. 78 min: Tottenham are 2-0 up on Bournemouth, making this a most miserable afternoon for Arsenal so far. 77 min: Bassey is booked for timewasting. He’s had a fine game against the club he was red-carded against early in the season. 75 min: Pereira dances across the sodden turf and pulls off a backheel. Fulham are enjoying their football. 74 min: It’s blowy off the Thames. Maybe this is the storm I mentioned. It’s a pea souper. Arsenal happy to pass the ball around. 72 min: Fulham sub: off goes Iwobi, on goes Pereira. Iwobi applauded by Arsenal fans. That’s a nice gesture. 71 min: Iwobi and Jimenez, using the lesser spotted Rabona tackle, force a chance for Cairney, whose shot is saved by Raya. 69 min: Fulham look calm. There’s a storm to come but Arteta’s changes have left the midfield all to the home team. 67 min: Two Gunners subs. Jesus and Trossard on, Martinelli and White off. Nketiah survives and Arteta opts for a back three. 66 min: The resultant free-kick is in a dangerous position. Well, not that dangerous. Odegaard smashes miles over. 65 min: First booking, and it’s Tom Cairney for his foul on Bukayo Saka. 63 min: Robinson and Bassey misread a Martinelli cross and it falls to Saka who volleys wildly over. 62 min: Arsenal go about their task with gusto. More haste, less speed? They seem a bit frantic. 60 min: Arteta on the sidelines asking for his team to “rise yerself” or suchlike. They’ve been pretty poor in truth. Goal! Fulham 2-1 Arsenal (De Cordova-Reid, 59) Willian takes, Palhinha’s header down and deflections aplenty before De Cordova-Reid thrashes home. The look on Arteta’s face is a picture. 58 min: Gabriel heads behind. Him and Dec Rice are not getting on at the moment. Some cross words exchanged before Fulham win another corner. 56 min: De Cordova-Reid shapes to put Jimenez away. Saliba read that one very well. Or else the strike would have been clear on Raya. 55 min: Arsenal seeking to locate their head of steam but being frustrated by Fulham. Willian though continues to buzz around his old team. It takes a Saka tackle to stop him getting away. 53 min: Ben White has space. He doesn’t make much of it, and slices an attempted cross behind the touchlines. 51 min: By the way, Kiwior has departed, and Tomiyasu is in that troubled left-back spot. Always thought Kieran Tierney was underused there, though injuries obviously a factor. 49 min: Fulham want a penalty, they get a corner instead when Castagne falls in the area. This one’s cleared with ease. At the other end, Castagne comes across to stop Nketiah. 47 min: Referee Peter Bankes, from Merseyside, Greater Manchester, comes across Iwobi and that sets up an Arsenal attack. Marco Silva is furious but the move came to nothing. So that’s that 46 min: We go again but first some Charles Antaki: “If Arsenal are allowing Willian - lethargic Willian, not-bothered Willian, Arsenal-era Willian - to look lively then something is greatly amiss. It’s not the right-sided defence, really, it’s just sort of … everything. End of year malaise. The prospect of what global horrors 2024 will bring. Apocalypse now or very soon. But a couple of Saka goals would cure all that.” Half-time: Fulham 1-1 Arsenal It’s Fulham who should be the happier, having dropped behind to Saka’s close-range finish. The home team have looked lively when Willian and Jimenez, their goalscorer, have been in tandem. Arsenal have plenty to do in the second half. 45+3 min: Arsenal push on for a half-time lead. Declan Rice steps up to shoot. But he’s as off-target as the rest of his teammates. 45+2 min: Nketiah, at last, gets a chance to shoot. But it would be ambitious to score from the angle he attempts his shot from. A sign of desperation for a player who has had a quiet half. 45 min: Four minutes are added on. Willian and Jimenez, the old men, almost set each other up for an attack. The danger is averted. 44 min: Palhinha is sold short, and then Arsenal go away with the ball, only for Calvin Bassey, excellent so far, to storm out and win it. Eventually, Tosin gets room to have a shot….and misses by miles. 42 min: Martinelli, fed by Odegaard, smashes wide. It was a good shot just hit with too much swerve. Better by Arsenal. Odegaard has been kept quiet thus far. 42 min: Gabriel Jesus is warming up. He will surely come on in the second half. It’s not been a good game so far for Eddie. 40 min: Saka complains as he loses a battle of muscle with Jimenez. “Referee” goes the cry from the Gunners fans, who are not happy with life at the moment. 38 min: Saka blasts a cross over to - and higher than – Havertz. The radar is wonky. 37 min: Fulham playing by far the better football here. Arsenal way off it. Long way to go, of course, but that early goal is an outlier. 35 min: Fulham now fizz with danger with Jimenez threading the ball around nicely. Willian sends Robinson away. Both Gunners full-backs clearly being targeted. 33 min: Arsenal pressure, with Havertz stepping up. But Martinelli’s touch is heavy. Nobody looks too on-song for Arsenal. 32 min: Arsenal’s attacks lack coherency, and Nketiah is yet to be much of a success for them. 30 min: It is so good to see Jimenez playing well and scoring. It was against Arsenal that his head injury came. Goal! Fulham 1-1 Arsenal (Jimenez, 29) Arsenal have been very subdued…and Robinson has been a big weapon. Tom Cairney’s ball is a beaut, and Jimenez steps in to score. 23 min: David Raya is down, and there’s a delay in play. Aaron Ramsdale won’t be coming on for a while yet. The Spaniard is OK 21 min: Fulham much more in this game now. Saliba loses the ball to Bobby Reid, and there’s blocked shots from both Willian and Iwobi. 19 min: Jimenez and Willian come to the fore, the striker spreading the play. Iwobi’s ball across finds Willian, who steps inside and misses the target. 17 min: More Fulham targeting of the Kiwior corner. This time, Castagne can’t get to it. 16 min: Martinelli scampers to the corner but Nketiah commits a foul in chasing down the loose ball. 14 min: Fulham build up an attack quite beautifully, eventually sending Robinson down the flank, his ball inside to Jimenez and a shot from the Mexican forces a save from Raya. 12 min: Arsenal dominating possession, Fulham finding it tough to string any passes together. They’re targeting the Arsenal left, with Castagne pushed right up against Kiwior. So far the Pole has done his job well enough. 10 min: Kiwior sends the lively Martinelli down the left. He can’t get the ball through to Nketiah. 8 min: Raya rushes out to stop a Castagne pass that was aimed towards Fulham’s forwards, who have been absentees so far. 6 min: That was easy for Arsenal. They will be relieved to score after what happened against West Ham. Fulham were opened up like a tin of beans. Goal! Fulham 0-1 Arsenal (Saka, 5) From one end to the other. Fulham attack, lovely ball from Iwobi to the back post and Castagne gets the ball. He can’t beat Raya, and Arsenal spring into the attack. Martinelli speeds away, cuts back in and the ball spills to Saka who deflects it in. Was he offside? VAR checks: given. 3 min: Kiwior is replicating the Zinchenko role of tucking in at full-back. Odegaard meanwhile leads the press and then finds himself with a shooting chance. He narrowly misses the target when Fulham’s defenders had stood off him. And away we go.... 1 min: Arsenal push up on their London opposition from the start. They have something to prove after losing to West Ham. Pat gets in touch: “Why is that big central upper stand at Craven Cottage empty? Surely they could find a few people eager to brave the rain and wind.“ The short answer is that the contractors went bump and the job isn’t yet finished. The teams take the long walk from the Craven Cottage dressing room, and in front of the still half-empty new stand. The musical interlude you get down there reminds of attending a West End musical like Time or Cats. A very odd overture greets the teams. Mikel Arteta speaks to Sky Sports: “We played less than 72 hours ago and are going to need a lot of energy to beat Fulham. I fully trust my players. We are generating so many situations and when that happens goals will come. Today, hopefully we will be more efficient.” Ian Colvin gets in touch: “Now that all teams have worked out that you can nullify Saka and Martinelli by putting two defensive players on each of them, surely this should leave a massive defensive shaped hole in the middle of the pitch to allow Jesus/Nketiah to nonchalantly stroke the ball into the onion bag? Or does my analysis of this go someway to explain why have always sucked at Football Manager?” Who do you want your club to sign? Arsenal FFP is a factor here. If we can’t count on the fitness of Thomas Partey, perhaps the Saudis can tempt him. I’m hoping we’re not forced to flog the homegrown likes of Emile Smith Rowe, but frankly, with everyone chasing a proven goalscorer, selling Fábio Vieira etc won’t make much of a dent in the fee demanded for Ivan Toney or Dominic Solanke. Elsewhere, Douglas Luiz won’t be the only Villa player coveted by plenty of clubs, but I just can’t see how we stump up £100m for him. Based on his impressive pre-season form, I’d settle for Jurriën Timber’s early recovery from the ACL injury he suffered in the opening game; he’ll feel like a new signing and might well energise our squad in the finishing straight. Fulham Some media outlets seem to have a vested interest in João Palhinha leaving, such is their eagerness to link our under-contract midfielder with all and sundry. As for incoming deals, another combative midfielder – André of Fluminense – is reported to be on our radar. The former fan favourite Fábio Carvalho, currently on loan with Red Bull Leipzig from Liverpool, has been linked with a return. Like several other youngsters before him, Carvalho has found that the grass isn’t always greener. But it’s strikers that we need most – preferably of the “proven” variety. Greek forward Vangelis Pavlidis of Alkmaar is apparently a target (oo-er, shades of Mitroglou?). One other telling signature would be that of Tosin Adarabioyo. Our centre-back will be out of contract next summer and has starred recently. Bernd Leno lines up today for Fulham against his old club. Last time out didn’t go so well for Arsenal. Three changes for Arsenal: Oleksandr Zinchenko is replaced by Jakub Kiwior at left-back. In midfield, Kai Havertz returns after suspension and replaces Leandro Trossard. Eddie Nketiah replaces the benched Gabriel Jesus. Jimenez AND Willian return for Fulham and Timothy Castagne replaces Kenny Tete. The teams Fulham: Leno, Castagne, Adarabioyo, Bassey, Robinson, Joao Palhinha, Cairney, De Cordova-Reid, Iwobi, Willian, Jimenez. Subs: Rodak, Tete, Reed, Wilson, Ballo-Toure, Andreas Pereira, Rodrigo Muniz, Lukic, Diop. Arsenal: Raya, White, Saliba, Gabriel, Kiwior, Odegaard, Rice, Havertz, Saka, Nketiah, Martinelli. Subs: Ramsdale, Smith Rowe, Cedric, Tomiyasu, Trossard, Jorginho, Nelson, Elneny, Gabriel Jesus Referee: Peter Bankes (Merseyside) Preamble Arsenal’s title challenge took a hit last time out, with West Ham winning at the Emirates. Bad defending and panicky finishing let them down. Here’s a chance for redemption, and Fulham look to be ideal opposition, judging by recent results. It doesn’t seem too long ago that Marco Silva’s men were smashing in the goals but then came defeats to Burnley and Bournemouth. Perhaps Raul Jimenez’s return might alter that though Willian’s continuing absence is probably a greater problem. A London derby by the Thames to close out 2023: soccer! Kick-off at 2pm, join me.