EFL Cup exit means Arsenal are heading for another trophyless season

Arsenal's EFL Cup journey came to an abrupt end on Wednesday night when they suffered a 3-1 defeat against West Ham at the London Stadium.

An own goal by Ben White was followed by goals from Mohammed Kudus and Jarrod Bowen to put West Ham 3-0 up after which Martin Odegaard pulled one back for Arsenal with a late goal.

The result is only Arsenal's second defeat of what has been an excellent season across all competitions so far so it should not exactly warrant a frenzy or inquiry into the manager.

On the other hand, there is a chance Arsenal just let their only realistic shot at a trophy fly out of the window, which would sting if it turns out to be true.

Arsenal stepped up several levels last season to emerge as serious contenders to win the Premier League and becoming one of the best teams in the world as a result.

For all their improvement and great football for the last 18 months, Arteta's Gunners still need a major trophy which is the highest form of validation.

The most attainable of the four available trophies for Arsenal this season was the EFL Cup which they have now lost because Arteta did not take it seriously enough.

Resting key players in a league cup game is standard practice for every club, especially the big ones but most teams rotate in relation to the difficulty of their fixture.

An away game against West Ham is a difficult fixture for any team in England on their best day and Arteta of all people would know. A 2-2 draw in that same stadium back in April was one of the reasons Arsenal fell short of the league title last season.

So when Arteta pulled up to the London Stadium with David Raya, William Saliba, Declan Rice, Martin Odergaard, Gabriel Martinelli and Bukayo Saka all on the bench, it sent a message that this tournament was not a priority for him, especially with a trip away to Newcastle in the Premier League coming up this weekend.

Arteta turning his nose up at the EFL Cup in favour of other competitions implies that he genuinely believes Arsenal can win any one of the Premier League, FA Cup and/or the UEFA Champions League.

And while all of that is more improbable than impossible, it is a literal fact that the EFL Cup is the most achievable of the four trophies on offer in English football.

Arsenal have not won a Premier League title since 2004 and have also never won a Champions League title or any major European gong for that matter so history is not on their side in pursuing the big ones this season.

And as far as the FA Cup goes, there is no guarantee Arteta would not treat it just as he did the EFL Cup, especially if feels he has to choose at some point during the season.

This is particularly frustrating from an Arsenal perspective as all eight teams in the EFL Cup quarterfinals are very beatable and they would have been the outright favourites had they taken it seriously.

The prospect of another great season without a trophy is staring Arsenal in the face because the manager opted to put all his eggs in one or two much more competitive baskets.