'No need' - Nuno Espirito Santo leaves Martin Keown with egg on face after brutally honest comment about Arsenal's struggles under Mikel Arteta

The North London side were held to a frustrating 1-1 draw by Forest at the City Ground - a result that saw Arsenal fall further behind in the Premier League title race, trailing leaders Liverpool by 13 points.

Gabriel Jesus, Kai Havertz, Gabriel Martinelli, and Bukayo Saka were all sidelined, leaving Arteta with limited options up front. In response, midfielder Mikel Merino continued to slot in as a makeshift striker, especially after scoring two goals in a win over Leicester City. However, the Spaniard did little to inspire confidence in the forward line as the Gunners could muster just one shot on target in the 90 minutes.

Santo's decision to field a back four against Arsenal was a striking choice, especially after his side had employed a more defensive back five formation in their previous outing against Fulham. In a TNT Sports post-match show, when Keown asked why he shifted to a back-four, Nuno revealed that he felt no extra defensive cover was needed due to Arsenal’s lack of a recognized striker.

"As Arsenal doesn't have a striker… they didn't play in those positions," Santo replied bluntly. "There's no need for an extra body, so the overload will be in the midfield, it's about containing the midfield."

With just two wins in their last five games, Arteta's side appears to be losing momentum, and their title challenge is slipping further away. Moreover, with Liverpool showing no signs of slowing down in their pursuit of a record-equalling 20th title, the margin for error is rapidly shrinking. Arsenal will travel to Old Trafford next to face Manchester United in the league on March 9. Before that, they have to deal with PSV in the first leg of a Champions League round of 16 tie on Tuesday evening.