Mikel Arteta kept his cool despite dismal Fulham loss making it just one win in six for Arsenal… the Gunners need a new striker to stay in title race but their defence is creaking too

Mikel Arteta was measured as he slammed the Craven Cottage dressing room door after the final whistle on Sunday. No rant. No name calling.

The Arsenal head coach would of course have been well within his rights to speak with a few home truths.

His team had just suffered their second straight loss, their fourth of the season.

But more than that, Arsenal's performance was dismal – by far the worst of the season.

Yet by all accounts the Spaniard managed to keep things together while making his disappointment abundantly clear.

That's not to say Arteta isn't burning inside. He was delighted with the way his side played in the 2-0 win over Brighton on December 17 and then in the draw against Liverpool six days later.

His joy was justified. His team was excellent at both. Not so much since then.

Arteta has absolved his players of blame in last Thursday's home defeat to West Ham. But deep in his heart, Arteta knows his team was under-par against the Hammers.

There was no such shelter in Fulham on Sunday. In fact, Arteta is said to have become increasingly irritated by the recent results.

The dominant win over Brighton is Arsenal's only win in six games.

But prior to that run, it is pertinent to remember that they needed an injury-time winner from Declan Rice to beat Luton, who scored two past, and, similarly, an 89th-minute strike from Kai Havertz to beat Brentford in late November .

It would be an overreaction to suggest the wheels are coming off. But the nuts become loose.

But with eighteen games left to play, there is still time to rectify the situation.

The obvious way to do this would be the transfer market. There is a willingness to do that, but the limitations of the FFP regulations after a summer spend of almost £200 million will hamper Arsenal in the period.

The club wants to add a striker, two midfielders and a defender to their ranks before the start of next season.

But the January period is a notoriously difficult market to operate in.

For example, it would be more beneficial to spend between £80 and £100 million on Ivan Toney in the summer, especially for Brentford, who are just four points clear of the relegation zone.

Selling players would provide more financial leeway during the January window, with Eddie Nketiah, Mohamed Elneny, Jakub Kiwior and Aaron Ramsdale said to be among the players attracting interest.

Signing a regular goalscorer could mean the difference between Arsenal winning the Premier League and falling short for a second successive season.

Bukayo Saka is the competition's top scorer with six goals, two of which were penalties.

Nketiah, for whom Arsenal rejected an initial approach from Crystal Palace, has scored five, including three in one match against Sheffield United.

Gabriel Jesus, who has been injured for much of the season, is failing, while Gabriel Martinelli has scored just twice.

It has become a problem for Arsenal, who have this season sacrificed last season's attacking flair for a sturdier and more robust approach.

Yet there is a feeling among many at Arsenal that the arrival of a new versatile defender in January should be a priority.

The argument for such an approach is compelling. Jurrien Timber is making positive progress after a cruciate ligament injury, but will return in March.

Takehiro Tomiyasu is going to the Asia Cup with Japan and Oleksandr Zinchenko is struggling with a calf problem.

Ben White, whose talks over a new contract are still ongoing, is playing with an uncomfortable long-term problem that club doctors are trying to find a solution to.

Key central midfielder Thomas Partey, who filled in at right-back at the start of the season, has been left out of Ghana's Africa Cup of Nations squad as he continues his rehabilitation from a thigh injury that has kept him sidelined since October.

“From all the information we have received, the timelines of his recovery and the caution that will be exercised do not match our timelines for the AFCON,” Ghana head coach Chris Hughton said on Monday.

The tournament ends on February 11; If Hughton's comments mean anything, Arsenal will be without Partey, who remains one of Arsenal's best players, for a while.

It's easy to see why Arsenal might be willing to delay their search for a striker until the summer, even if it could infuriate fans.

But what Sunday's loss to Fulham especially exposed is that Arsenal's players need rest.

They lacked energy and intensity; individually and collectively.

The club are finalizing plans for the midwinter break to Dubai after Sunday's FA Cup tie against Liverpool, although the prospect of a repeat at Anfield will impact the dates of the trip.

The training will be on a small scale and there will be no obligations to the media, although there will be commercial obligations that must be met.

But overall the players will get a chance to recharge and unwind under the Middle Eastern sun, although the benefits of staying in England during the Premier League winter break are also being discussed by certain figures at the club have been emphasized.

In any case, Arteta will be hoping that the split – judging by their drop in form – will do his players a world of good. Their title dream may depend on it.