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Mikel Arteta insists Arsenal can still win the Premier League this season despite their heavy defeat to title rivals Manchester City.
City produced a remarkable performance to sweep aside Arsenal with a 4-1 win at the Etihad – cutting the Gunners' lead at the top of the table to just two points, having played two games less than the league leaders.
Kevin De Bruyne opened the scoring with a superb finish early on before John Stones added a second on the stroke of half-time, following a VAR review for offside.
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De Bruyne scored his second after after the interval as City threatened to run riot.
Rob Holding pulled one back for Arsenal with five minutes remaining but City would have the final say, Erling Haaland scoring his 49th goal of the season to seal a massive win for the home side.
Speaking after full-time, Arteta struggled to hide his disappointment but insisted his side could still be crowned champions this season.
"Today is very difficult after the way we lost, but we have to stand up and look at the bigger picture and the fact that we're competing toe-to-toe with this team – it is incredible," Arteta told BT Sport.
"We want to compete and we're not going to give up.
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"There are five games to go and anything can happen. I've seen a lot of things happen in more than 20 years and you have to believe that.
"Tonight it is difficult to do that but we have to look in the mirror and accept that we have lost against an exceptional team, and that is the level."
City dominated the match from start to finish and could have won by an even bigger margin - with Arsenal goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale forced into making several top saves.
Arsenal are now without a win in their last four league matches and will need to bounce back against Chelsea on Tuesday if they are to maintain their faltering title challenge.
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City, meanwhile, have won their last seven league games and are unbeaten in 17 matches in all competitions.
They return to action against Fulham on Sunday and can overtake Arsenal with a victory at Craven Cottage.
Topics: Manchester City, Arsenal, Football, Premier League
Rory O'Callaghan