Petr Cech has acknowledged that Arsenal will have a tough time getting into the top four, after they continue to fall short in the Premier League.

Arsenal lost 2-1 to Bournemouth on Sunday and find themselves eight points off fourth place ahead of Saturday’s meeting with Crystal Palace.

It leaves the Gunners with an uphill battle to return to the Champions League next season. It’s not impossible, but even Petr Cech feels that the current situation is far from ideal.

“The situation becomes very dangerous for us because we want to be in the top four at least,” he told Arsenal.com. “When you lose games like we have so far this season away from home, where we were in a position to win, you leave yourself a mountain to climb.

“With every game comes a bit more pressure, so hopefully we will manage to get the ready for the next one, win it and kick from there.”

Arsenal are without a win in five games in all competitions. Four of those games were played away from home, where our form continues to be poor. Draws away to West Brom and Chelsea was the best it got before Nottingham Forest knocked us out of the FA Cup.

Our one home game was another draw against Chelsea. Arsenal return to home comforts this weekend against Crystal Palace before the second-leg of the Carabao Cup semi-final.

The Carabao Cup and the Europa League could end up being our only chances of success this season. The Europa League could prove especially important, as it could be our only route into the Champions League next season.