da cassino online： The Gunners will come up agonisingly short in their bid for a first Premier League title since 2004, and now a huge summer transfer window awaits

da dobrowin： Mikel Arteta apologised to Arsenal’s fans after Sunday’s dismal home defeat against Brighton. It wasn’t really an apology over the result, but more over the fact that his side had failed to live up to the lofty expectations that their performances over the course of the season have helped create.

“I hate the feeling of letting people down,” he said. “That’s the biggest regret I have and I have to apologise for that.” Arsenal’s manager was visibly crestfallen after the game. When he sat in front of the press, it was as despondent as he had been all season, which is hardly surprising given what the defeat meant in terms of the title race.

Arteta knew it was all over and he couldn’t hide his disappointment. His young team had pushed Manchester City’s well-oiled winning machine all the way, but in the end they fell just short.

Mathematically of course it is not done. We will have to wait until next weekend for that. But it was telling that amid his disappointment, Arteta already seemed to be looking to next season and what needed to be done to build a squad that was better equipped to last the pace.

(C)Getty Images'Cannot do what we did in the second half'

“We fought really hard to be in the position we are in and today [Sunday] we were in a critical moment to keep hoping and digging for that dream,” said the Arsenal boss. “When you have to play in these moments, you cannot do what we did in the second half. If a team is capable of doing that when it comes to the biggest stage, there’s a lot of things to analyse and think about because it cannot happen.”

Arteta has always defended his team this season. When they lost at Everton in Sean Dyche’s first game in charge, he walked into the press conference room at Goodison Park and declared he loved his players more after the defeat than he had done before the game had got underway.

But this time there was none of that. There was no defence offered. This time Arteta questioned his players and hinted that the second-half capitulation against Brighton could lead to changes ahead of next season.

AdvertisementGetty ImagesNot settling for second best

Arsenal’s manager is not someone who will settle for second best. Speak to anyone who knows him or has worked with him and they will tell you that.Everything he does and works towards is about winning, and the way his team have failed to last the pace this season will now be at the forefront of his mind.

What does he need to do to make the squad stronger? Where are the weaknesses? And who could come in to strengthen his hand and make the team better equipped for next season, when Champions League football will return to the Emirates? 

Those will all have been questions that will have been swirling around in Arteta's head following the full-time whistle on Sunday.

(C)Getty ImagesWorn down by a relentless City

Arsenal have shown this season how far they have come. Wins against Forest at the weekend and Wolves on the final day will leave them with 87 points. Only the Invincibles have amassed more in a single season for the Gunners during the Premier League era. But that is not enough if you want to overhaul this City side, as Liverpool have found out in recent seasons.

To win the title nowadays, you need almost total perfection. Arsenal have been very good, great even. But not perfect. So how do they respond to this setback and move forward?

Clearly, there is still plenty of work to be done on the squad. The players that are there now can still improve, as Arteta stated himself in the build-up to the Brighton game.

Getty'We can be much, much better'

“We are still very far (from where I want),” he said. “We can be much, much, much better at a lot of things still. Huge margins. We can be much better in our build-up, attacking man-to-man situations, attacking open spaces, defending deep, set-pieces, we have huge margins to (make up) in terms of game management… We can be more ruthless to kill games.

“There are a lot of things that we have to seek for improvement, because we don't have a single player who has reached his peak. Not one.”

But it’s not just about improving players that are already there. The squad also needs to be bolstered by new additions if Arsenal want to compete with the very best that Europe has to offer.