WHERE DOES Gunners’ boss Mikel Arteta begin the post-mortem of this defeat as his captain, Gabon striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, proves central to the farce as Arsenal lose again, writes the Voice of Sport at Emirates Stadium (Dec 13).

Arteta is spoiled for choice after an insipid performance that saw Burnley win in this corner of north London for the first time since 1974.

Firstly, there was his side’s customary bluntness in attack. They now have just two goals in eight Premier League outings and, for all Arteta’s claims that his side were dominant, they could have been behind long before Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang headed the ball from Ashley Westwood’s corner beyond Bernd Leno with a glancing touch on 73 minutes.

Secondly, the Arsenal manager was badly let down by the players once again. There were culprits all over the pitch but Granit Xhaka’s dismissal for violent conduct fatally undermined Arsenal’s efforts to claim a Premier League victory on home turf for the first time in four attempts.

To end that ignominious run, Arsenal needed calm and focus but instead were masters of their own downfall when the red mist that descended upon Xhaka. The Swiss was initially booked for halting Dwight McNeil but a VAR check saw that yellow card upgraded to red after Xhaka grabbed Westwood by the throat in the aftermath.

If Arsenal thought Burnley would be a soft touch given their own travails they were soon disabused of that notion. Their largely staid approach play posed Burnley few questions and there would not be a moment of inspiration from an Aubameyang, Alexandre Lacazette or Willian on a wet Sunday night in north London. Instead, the Arsenal’s captain’s contribution would be profoundly felt at the other end. There were boos at the final whistle from those Arsenal supporters who made it inside.

Burnley’s second league win of the season, however, moved them out of the relegation zone for the time being. If Arsenal needed any further sign of their diminished status, they are just two places and four points clear of the Clarets.

The visitors might have been ahead as early as 14 minutes in when Chris Wood capitalised on a moment of uncertainty between Rob Holding and Gabriel Magalhaes but, instead of meeting Robbie Brady’s cross with a header, the ball bounced harmlessly off Wood’s shoulder.

That chance was the most presentable for Sean Dyche’s side but it did not exist in isolation. Arsenal made it easy for Burnley to defend deep while harbouring realistic ambitions of pouncing on the break or profiting from a set-piece.

In the event, Aubameyang’s own goal was the first time Arsenal have conceded direct from a set-piece this term, although the concession seemed entirely in character for this team given its current trajectory.

Arsenal have now lost four consecutive home matches in the league for the first time since 1959. The credit Arteta earned from winning last season’s FA Cup and sticking in there with the so-called big teams earlier in this campaign is dwindling fast. There is little respite to be found in the punishing fixture list as Christmas approaches, with even supposedly ‘winnable’ fixtures seeming anything but.