"Have to be the first ones to own up" - Arsenal star says he and his team-mates 'have to look in the mirror' after falling short of PL title

Aaron Ramsdale has urged Arsenal players to 'look in the mirror' after failing to win the Premier League title. He believes that they should be happy about pushing Manchester City, but disappointed at not finishing the job.

Arsenal have slipped up in the title race and ended up losing it on Saturday after getting beaten by Nottingham Forest. The Gunners also lost to Brighton & Hove Albion last week, and that had all but sealed their fate.

Speaking to The Athletic, Rasmdale claimed that he was proud of the Arsenal players, but wants them to own their mistakes. He said:

"We pushed this Man City team all the way, who've won (the league) five times in six years. The disappointment is not going to come from not winning the league, it's going to come from how it's ended up playing out. We will be really proud of ourselves, but we do have to look in the mirror and we have to be the first ones to own up to our mistakes and where we went wrong, because that's how we learn and get better."

The Gunners goalkeeper added that their main aim this season was making it back to the UEFA Champions League and said:

"Champions League football was originally the first goal at the start of the season. We've managed that for the first time in six or seven years. The season is not done yet. We need to regroup, we've got one game left which we need to put a performance and smile on our supporters' faces which they deserve. They can go to the summer and be proud of us."

Arsenal are keen on adding more firepower this summer and have made Declan Rice their top target.

Ramsdale hits back at fans and pundits calling out Arsenal for bottling the league

Aaron Ramsdale is not happy with fans and pundits calling Arsenal's failure to win the Premier League title a bottle job. He believes it is just lazy analysis and told The Guardian:

"This narrative of 'bottled it', I think it is an easy way out. It's just quick, cheap narrative from certain people who have not actually gone digging into stories of what we've achieved. Some people are saying it and forgetting that other teams have had the same experience as us."

The Gunners had a five-point lead over Manchester City at the halfway stage, but they ended up losing the title race to City, who still have three matches left.