Sometimes you can just tell when a team is going to lose. Body language from both players and managers during a match is often a clear giveaway. Frustration, kicking the ball away needlessly, a look on the face that says, “No matter what I do today, it won’t change the result.” If things are really bad at a club you’ll know before they even kick off that the win will prove elusive.

So it was with Arsenal on Saturday and Inter Milan on Friday. Both sides came into their weekend matches following embarrassing defeats, and with both you just felt that there wasn’t going to be enough mental strength, nevermind leadership, to bring about an immediate turnaround.

Arsenal, coming off the back of a 4-0 trouncing to AC Milan at the San Siro in the Champions League, had looked so far out of their depth against the Rossoneri, had been so comprehensively dominated and absolutely humiliated, that there was simply no way they weren’t going to carry the embarrassment with them into their FA Cup match against Sunderland.

This isn’t to take anything away from the Black Cats, who thoroughly deserved their 2-0 win at the Stadium of Light. If anything it’s an indictment of Gunners’ manager Arsene Wenger, whose responsibility it is to both take a side from the devastation of a big loss to the clear-mindedness of the next match and populate his team with the sort of characters who can shake off defeat, address shortcomings honestly and prepare for the next challenge with vigour.

Those are the sorts of things that just aren’t happening at Arsenal, and in their stead are the usual assortment of excuses—the pitch was too old and rough; the pitch was too soft and new; the referee had it out for us; the schedule was unfair—each of which Wenger trotted out between Wednesday and Saturday.

Claudio Ranieri’s reaction to Friday’s 3-0 defeat at home to Bologna was more of the look-yourself-in-the-mirror variety.

The Inter boss, whose side has now lost four matches in a row in all competitions and taken just one point of a possible 15 in the league, at least had the pride and sense to avoid the excuse-mongering Wenger has so pathetically fallen back on at Arsenal. The 60-year-old was straightforward in his post-match remarks, saying the Nerazzurri were not giving their best effort and would have to take responsibility for their performances before things improved. He also apologised to the club’s fans and president.

Of course, even the most gallant of apologies or admissions of fault is not enough to mask what is quickly turning into a shambles of a season at Inter Milan. In a way, what’s happening with the Italian giants is even more puzzling than the run of futility at Arsenal. This, after all, is a side comprised, for the most part, of a group of players who did the treble just two years ago. But whether success has bored them or age caught up with them the fact is their performances since the Christmas break have been lethargic, the mannerisms of the players disinterested.

Whatever the case, motivational issues are the department of the manager, and if the players at his disposal just aren’t up to it anymore it should behoove him to find other clubs for them, and to acquire players who can be stimulated to achieve success.

For the time being however, Inter Milan are stuck with the plodding Lucio, the hot-and-cold Milito and the indolent Sneijder. And Arsenal are stuck with Wenger. Which makes it easy to forecast what’s to come in the near future for both these clubs.

Inter are days away from being thumped by Marseille; Arsenal are a week removed from a loss to Tottenham Hotspur, their biggest rivals.

Sometimes you can just tell when a team is going to lose.

Follow Jerrad Peters on Twitter @peterssoccer