Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger says his side are playing catch-up in the Premier League title race after Tuesday’s goalless draw with Southampton left them five points behind leaders Leicester City with 14 games remaining.
A four-game winless streak in the league has seen Arsenal slip to fourth in the table after Tottenham Hotspur’s 3-0 victory over Norwich City took Mauricio Pochettino’s men ahead of the Gunners on goal difference.
“We have to catch that back and we have a difficult programme, especially away from home. We need to respond quickly away from home now,” Wenger told the club’s website.
With Leicester City impressing in their 2-0 win over Liverpool, Wenger believes the spotlight will shine even brighter on Claudio Ranieri’s side and hopes the increased pressure can help derail their phenomenal campaign.
“Leicester won again and now I am sure that everybody will take them very seriously, especially in the media, so they will be under pressure as well,” the Frenchman said.
“But we have not to look too much at Leicester or (second placed) Man City. We have to win football games. We have to focus on how to respond quickly and win our next game, that’s all we can do.”
Arsenal have failed to score in three consecutive league games for the first time since February 2009 and Olivier Giroud called on his team mates to rediscover their killer instinct in front of goal to get their league title tilt back on track.
“It’s a long way to go and we just need momentum. You have to keep the faith and keep believing that you will maybe score. He (Saints goalkeeper Fraser Forster) was always in the right position and did very well and it is frustrating,” Giroud said.
“Now we are five points from Leicester so it is going to be a hard time in the few weeks to go and we need to get as many points as we can.
"It’s not over, we need to stay positive and be more efficient in the next games to come.”
Arsenal travel to relegation-threatened Bournemouth on Sunday.
Meanwhile, Forster’s display showed the Southampton goalkeeper is ready to challenge for the England gloves again, Saints manager Ronald Koeman said.
Forster made a string of saves at the Emirates Stadium to keeps Arsenal at bay and chalked up a fourth clean sheet in a row since his return from a long-term knee injury.
While Wenger bemoaned his side’s lack of conviction, Koeman had no doubt about which player had made the difference between the teams.
“It was a massive performance from Fraser today.
"He was the key to get one point because normally we are not a defending team that allows opponents to create those kind of opportunities,” the Dutchman told the club’s website.
“He’s back and it’s a fourth clean sheet in a row.
“That’s unbelievable after nine months out. You have other good goalkeepers, but for sure he will be back in the national team.”
Forster lost his place in Roy Hodgson’s England squad to Stoke’s Jack Butland but his recent performances suggest he will be pushing for a place at Euro 2016.
The keeper was reluctant to take all the credit for his team’s hard-earned point at Arsenal, however.
“It was a fantastic team performance. Coming away to the Emirates you know you have to work really hard and we put in a really big shift,” he said.
“I’m just happy to contribute.
"I’m delighted to be back playing football and given the opportunity to do what I love.”
The draw saw Southampton move above Liverpool, losers to Leicester City, into seventh place in the league.