What's going on with Arsenal?

In light of the recent news that Denis Suarez is out for the rest of the season, it is only fitting that I talk about Arsenal's recent form.

Although the Barcelona loanee has played sparsely throughout his tenure, his injury is emblematic of Arsenal over the past month and change. What was supposed to be a great month for Gooners across the globe, but instead it has turned into a nightmare. How did Arsenal go from a near-lock in the top four to a team hoping just to squeeze in?

It started with an April 7th loss to Everton, a team that they had handled easily earlier this season. The loss, although disappointing wasn't the end of the world, as they still were in the driver's seat for a top four spot.

Theu followed that game up with a big win 2-0 victory against Napoli at the Emirates, Arsenal's stadium, in the Europa league. A result that was one of the most complete Arsenal had put on all season.

Following that win was a lucky 1-0 victory against Watford which only really happened due to an early red card against Watford's captain Troy Deeney and a second-leg win against Napoli to secure a spot in the Europa league semi-finals. Both results, although nervy, put them in the firm position to control our fate. Win against Crystal Palace, Wolves, and Leicester City and we have a great chance at finishing in the top four, possibly even in fourth.

Here's where things became unraveled. They DID NOT win any of those games, in fact they lost each one, conceding three goals in all three fixtures. Now don't get me wrong, Palace, Wolves, and Leicester are all decent teams, but for a club like Arsenal it is inexcusable not to win at least one of those games.

It's easy to pin the problems on their back line, which I have repeatedly done. Outside of Sokratis Papastathopoulos and injured defense men Rob Holding and Hector Bellerin, no player is a long term solution for the back -- Ainsley Maitland Niles is close but still needs polising-- which has so often cost us the game.

But there is much more rotten in the state of AFC. Despite all their attacking talent, their front-line lacks conviction. Alexandre Lacazette plays his heart out night-in and night-out but receives nothing back from the rest of the squad. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang shows glimpses but is far too often invisble for long stretches of the match. Mesut Ozil has quality but is guilty of the same offense as Aubameyang. Henrikh Mkitaryan and Alex Iwobi are careless and prone to silly mistakes. It was telling that nineteen year old Eddie Nketiah gave more in almost thirty minutes against Wolves than every attacker, sans Lacazette, combined.

This has been a problem at Arsenal for the last few years of Arsene Wenger's regime, and it's starting to bleed into Unai Emery's -- a disconcerting thought for all Arsenal fans. To play for the AFC badge is an honor, and every player who puts it on needs to give 110% effort any time they step on the pitch.

The problems at the Emirates are not relegated to only the players. It falls on the upper-level management and ownership to find players of quality to wear the badge and sell players who no longer fit our squad.

Of course doing that requires funding -- something our much maligned owner Stan Kroenke has been hesitant to give. Kroenke notoriously has given the club very little to spend in the transfer windows in recent years, relative to other top clubs across Europe. Just this past summer, six premier league clubs spent more than Arsenal. If the Gunners are going to compete for years to come, the transfer budget needs to increase.

Incredibly though, Arsenal is still in the hunt for a top four finish in the league. Despite losing four of our last five, they sit in 5th place. As Arsenal has cratered, so too have the other teams in the hunt for the top four. As it stands, we are point ahead of Manchester United and two points below Chelsea, and a top four finish and Champions League birth.

Finishing in the top four is within reach, and our last two league games, against Brighton and Burnley represent opportunities to grab six points, but they won't be given. They also could plausibly win the Europa league, granting them an automatic spot in next year's Champions league. Although winning a two-legged affair against Valencia and a possible finals match-up against either Chelsea or Eintracht Frankfurt will present a major challenge.

Despite their recent form, Arsenal should consider themselves lucky. They are still very much in fighting position to qualify for the Champions league next year. But it's not going to happen unless they change their attitudes and give it their all out there on the pitch.

It's now or never for the Gunners.