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Arsenal were left to rue missed opportunities, as they failed to beat Burnley yet again this season, playing out a 1-1 Premier League draw with the Clarets at Turf Moor. The result leaves the Gunners tenth in the league table, five points behind seventh-placed Liverpool, while Burnley move seven points clear of the relegation zone.
The Gunners could not have asked for a better start to the game, as Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang squeezed a low shot past Nick Pope at the near post in the sixth minute to give Arsenal the lead.
However, the visitors spurned numerous opportunities to kill the game as a contest, but their profligacy came back to haunt them, as Granit Xhaka's error gifted Burnley the equaliser. The midfielder saw his panicked clearance getting cannoned off Chris Wood and into the net in the 39th minute.
The second half began in a tame fashion, but both sides spurning gilt-edged chances to score the winner, with Chris Wood, Nicolas Pepe and Dani Ceballos, all coming close.
As is the norm in the Premier League, VAR also had a key part to play in this game. But eventually, the match ended in a stalemate, with both sides left to rue what might have been.
On that note, here are five talking points from the game:
#1 Arsenal's Granit Xhaka continues his Burnley nightmare
Oh Granit.
It was all going so well. Ever since his red card against Burnley earlier in the season, Granit Xhaka has been one of Arsenal's best, if not the most, dependable player. The Swiss midfielder has played every minute since coming back and has been one of the first names in Mikel Arteta's teamsheet.
Indeed, the Arsenal player looked quite good for much of the first half against Burnley - covering for his teammates, making interceptions and playing some delightfully-lofted passes to his forwards.
Yet, football can be a cruel mistress. When Xhaka received the ball from Bernd Leno in the 39th minute, it was almost inevitable an error would follow, and that is what ensued.
The Arsenal midfielder looked visibly affected in the second half. The Swiss midfielder has come back from such moments before, but Xhaka would like to forget his latest Arsenal outing and look to move on.
#2 VAR creates controversy yet again
It's getting depressingly familiar, but the standards of officiating in the Premier League have been pitiful this season, something that came to the fore in Arsenal's game at Burnley too. Even with the aid of high-definition cameras and multiple replays, the fact that VAR so often comes to the wrong decision is quite concerning.
Eric Pieters ought to have conceded a penalty for a handball late on, but the official word from the VAR concerned 'proximity'. However, the law states that if the body is made bigger with an arm being in an unnatural position, proximity does not come into question.
One only needs to look at the image above to come to a conclusion about the state of Eric Pieters' arm: away from the body, with a motion towards the ball - it's frankly abysmal how poor the refereeing standards have become.
What ought to infuriate football fans further is that moments later, VAR did prove its efficacy - correctly ruling out Eric Pieters' red card after the ball had struck his shoulder on the line.
#3 Arsenal - the architects of their own downfall
Putting aside all refereeing controversies, what ought to infuriate Arsenal head coach Mikel Arteta is that his team could have very easily won the game by a resounding scoreline.
Aside from Chris Wood's chance late on, Burnley offered little going forward. Arsenal had the lead and control of the game after Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang's opener but squandered away multiple chances to extend their lead, with the Gabonese forward and Bukayo Saka particularly culpable in this regard.
However, perhaps the worst of those misses came late in the second half when Nicolas Pepe produced a miskick with the goal at his mercy following a peach of a cross from Kieran Tierney. Dani Ceballos struck the post in injury time as well, adding insult to injury.
#4 Sean Dyche keeps the Burnley express going
Burnley offered very little in this game. But in typical Sean Dyche fashion, the Clarets walked away with a point and a total of four against Arsenal this season - a remarkable return for a club with so little to work with in comparison to others.
Indeed, had Chris Wood not spurned his one-on-one chance late on, Burnley could have had the ultimate smash-and-grab job. But when it happens so frequently as it does for Burnley, perhaps it is more than sheer luck.
Dyche saw his team ride their luck going into the break but then rejigged his team into a far more compact structure. Arsenal were unable to break them down until the final few minutes. With the gap to relegation now extended to seven points, Burnley ought to feel safe about their survival prospects this season.
They are a Premier League team, and they're here to stay - despite their naysayers.
#5 It's make-or-break time for Mikel Arteta
Mikel Arteta has rightly earned plenty of credit with two trophies to show for since assuming the reins at Arsenal. But the Gunners are fast losing the race for even the UEFA Europa League spots this season.
Arsenal have suffered some terrible luck, but they can't keep blaming misfortune and use it as an excuse for a club of their stature.
Arsenal now have a tricky set of games ahead that could make or break their season, and with that, possibly Arteta's hopes of remaining at the helm next campaign.
A tricky tie against Olympiakos in the UEFA Europa League comes next, followed by the North London derby against Tottenham Hotspur. Arsenal then face West Ham and Liverpool.
Given Arsenal's inconsistent results this season, things aren't looking very rosy for Arteta.
