Strange Arsenal Hoodoo Continues With 1-0 Defeat at Sheffield United
By Tom Gott
Arsenal's inconsistent start to the Premier League campaign continued on Monday evening as they fell to a hugely frustrating 1-0 loss to Sheffield United, and so did their voodoo at Bramall Lane.
After Nicolas Pépé missed a gilt-edged chance to open the scoring, Lys Mousset poked home on the half hour mark for the Blades to condemn a disappointing Arsenal side to defeat.
As noted by Opta, Arsenal have a miserable record at Bramall Lane. They have played more games at that ground without victory than they have at any other stadium in the Premier League, having failed to win on their four visits to Bramall Lane.
The first meeting between the two sides at that stadium came back in September 1992, when Arsenal needed a late equaliser from Ian Wright to snatch a 1-1 draw.
Their next visit to the red and white half of Sheffield came in April 1994, and Arsenal again needed to come from behind to grab a 1-1 draw. This time it was Kevin Campbell who popped up to save the day for George Graham's side.
Those results were as good as it got for Arsenal at Bramall Lane, as they have fallen to 1-0 defeats in their last two visits.
Arsène Wenger's side stumbled to a shock loss in December 2006 thanks to a first-half strike from Christian Nadé, despite the fact that the Blades were forced to play a portion of the match with centre-back Phil Jagielka in goal following an injury to Paddy Kenny.
Mousset's winning goal on Monday night made it consecutive 1-0 losses for the Gunners away at Sheffield United, ensuring that their winless run there will go on for a little while longer.
The defeat came as a huge blow to Unai Emery's side, who were looking to re-establish themselves as part of the top four in the Premier League. Victory would have seen them move up to third, but instead they remain fifth in the standings.
As for Sheffield United, their fantastic start to the campaign continued with the win, which has seen them climb up to ninth in the table. They are actually level on points with seventh-placed Tottenham Hotspur, which is far better than many predicted they would be doing by now.