Arsenal had to start putting together the sort of run that saw them be almost perfect in the second half of last season but two more dropped points, their eighth draw of the season, leaves them with a lot of ground to make up. There have been red cards to point to in the other games but this result was of their own making.

When asked about his role in changing Lewis-Skelly’s position, Arteta said, as relayed on HaytersTV: “The moment I saw him, the only words I could think is ‘change his position’ if he wants to have a chance here. “I spoke to him and I said: ‘This is where you’re going to have (opportunities).’