A point in the north London derby left Arsenal in familiar territory: fourth place. Two points off leaders Liverpool with an inferior goal difference to all above them. It seems Arsenal are on the back foot or does an unbeaten run of 10 Premier League games – 16 in all competitions – signal a return to the top of the Premier League?
We put forward five reasons why they will and five why they won’t.
Arsenal have strength in depth
It seems a long time since Arsène Wenger can point to a squad with depth across the board. Goalkeeper, defence, midfield and attack have the numbers, now it’s down to avoiding a calamitous run of injuries.
Speak too soon? Alexis reportedly suffered a “low-grade muscle tear” according to Chile – a hamstring injury according to Arsène – and the club are desperate for him to return to London rather than try to get fit for Chile’s World Cup qualifier against Uruguay.
Hector Bellerin left the Spanish Under-21 squad due to an ankle knock and is undergoing treatment. With Santi Cazorla yet to return to the first team, injuries are beginning to mount to key players.
Fortunately, Mesut Özil has been rested by Joachim Löw for the current round of international matches.
Kostafi – A strong case for the defence
The signing Arsenal supporters had been clamouring for arrived when Shkodran Mustafi arrived from Valencia. The German international settled quickly and his partnership with Laurent Koscielny has blossomed and the Gunners back four has a look of stability that has been missing for several seasons.
Mustafi has the pace that was missing when Per Mertesacker was alongside Koscielny and there are less moments of blind panic than previously seen. Mertesacker had other qualities such as leadership and an uncanny ability to read the game but he was targeted by quick forwards and Arsenal were left vulnerable.
Arguably, Arsenal have the best full back pairing in the Premier League; it’s hard to match Nacho Monreal’s consistency on the left or Hector Bellerin’s pace on the right. Others might argue that Walker, Azpilicueta or Kolarov are more accomplished but as a pair, only City’s pair is in the same league.
The opening day aberration aside, the Arsenal back four has conceded just seven goals in ten games and kept four clean sheets. It’s a return to the days of Adams, Bould, Winterburn and Dixon; clean sheets are becoming a habit.
There isn’t an outstanding team in the Premier League
Not yet, anyway. Manchester City were hailed as unbeatable with a ten-match winning start to the season but Celtic punctured the air of invincibility and Spurs deflated them completely. City wobbled with three draws and a win at West Bromwich Albion as they watched their lead at the top of the table evaporate.
Chelsea meanwhile were crushed at Arsenal with the Gunners leading 3 – 0 at half-time. Antonio Conte changed the formation to 3 – 4 – 3 and the Blues haven’t conceded a goal since. It’s tempting to wonder who can beat them at the moment but they have Tottenham at home and City away at the end of this month which may give us the answer.
And there’s the question of Liverpool. Whilst the attack is vibrant, there are still major concerns over the back four. There’s also an element of the flat-track bullies about them this season as well as questions about the lack of depth in the squad.
We’ve got Özil, Mesut Özil, I just don’t think you understand
If this is nicking a living, goodness knows what the rest of us are doing. Famously accused of doing that, the German has been in the best form of his time at Arsenal and heading to his best goal tally ever in a season.
As well as the goals his creativity has been of the highest order, well worth the tag ‘World Class’ which is bestowed upon him. A continuous supply line to Alexis Sanchez so far this season has seen the Gunners play some scintillating football. Goals have been relatively easy to come by for the pair and if Özil can continue to orchestrate the chances, even an Olivier Giroud barren spell may not happen.
No-one expects them to win it
There is a weight of expectations from their supporters but outside of the Holloway Road, few pundits anticipate Arsenal being crowned champions next May. Seduced by Pep Guardiola and the resurgence of Liverpool and Chelsea, the experts believe a top four place may be beyond Wenger in the final year of his current contract. Leicester won the title last season from a similar position; the pressure is off Arsenal which may help them slip through the pack to glory
But after the good, comes the bad:
Remember, remember – it always goes wrong in November
Inexplicably, Arsenal always wobble in the eleventh month of the year with the only exception being The Invincibles.
Wenger cannot explain the problems his sides encounter in this particular month although injuries is one key cause. Robin van Persie and Cesc Fabregas both suffered injuries following the international breaks.
Will this year be any different? The next Premier League match will tell us more. Manchester United away, their traditional bogey team. Nine defeats and one draw since they last won a Premier League game at Old Trafford in 2006.
To make matters worse, Arsenal have won just 1 of their trips to Old Trafford in November and that was back in 1977. They’ve lost seven of the other eight; whichever way you look at it, this is far from a happy hunting ground.
And just when they think it can’t get worse, there’s the Mourinho factor. Wenger has never beaten Mourinho in a league match, a cup match or any other competitive match. Only the 2015 Charity Shield when Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain’s goal beat Chelsea. Then again, everyone beat Chelsea last season.
Except for Arsenal, who lost to them twice in the Premier League.
Santi Cazorla’s absence was a worrying time for Arsenal
Small of stature, big of heart and talent. Santi Cazorla is Arsenal’s engine and their home performances have missed him. On their travels, with their opponents exploited by a ruthless counter-attack, his absence hasn’t been such a problem.
At the Emirates, facing disciplined defences, the Gunners have missed his darting runs, his perpetual motion and ability to turn up anywhere across the midfield and attack.
Mohammed Elneny and Granit Xhaka provide different solutions, with an impressive range of passing but it’s the zip and energy of Cazorla which was noticeable by its absence. If Arsenal are to challenge for the title, they need a solution to this problem should it arise again.
If Alexis Sanchez is injured, who scores the goals
On the face of it, the answer is Olivier Giroud and the French international is certainly a capable centre forward. His biggest problem is inconsistency. Giroud went fifteen games last season without a goal as Arsenal fell away in the title race, exited the FA Cup and waved “Au revoir” to the Champions League.
By no means was Giroud the sole reason for those events but his lack of goals was a huge contributing factor. And it struck without rhyme or reason as it has so often in the past. Last season was a longer barren spell than usual; they normally last six or seven games.
It’s a reason Arsenal supporters were desperate for a world-class striker during the summer.
Now he is under pressure for his place from Alexis Sanchez, can he respond with big performances every week? At Sunderland, in Sofia and against Tottenham, he certainly did with three goals in the two away games.
However, at 30 it seems a forlorn hope that he will suddenly discover a consistency previously missing.
Do they have the mental strength?
It’s one of Arsène Wenger’s great sayings that his squad is resilient. With the Premier League title beckoning, only Tottenham proved to have worse mental strength as Leicester walked off with the trophy.
Can Arsenal learn from their failure? Wenger is confident they can, the players believe they can but the north London club schools the squad well for the media and PR world.
At the moment, there are promising signs for them. A diabolically poor performance in Paris was rescued by an Alexis Sanchez equaliser whilst a two-goal deficit to Ludogorets was comfortably overturned. When the hapless Sunderland equalised, Arsenal went on to score three more times so surely it’s a problem solved?
Not quite. Getting into those situations is a genuine concern and against better teams, they won’t be so fortunate.
The fixtures don’t favour them
Compared to Manchester City, Chelsea and Liverpool, Arsenal have a tricky final five games, including a trip to White Hart Lane, Manchester United at the Emirates as well as the traditionally troublesome trip to Stoke. Only Spurs have comparable difficulty.
Can the Gunners triumph with that run-in? Recent history suggests that they may need to hold an unassailable lead before embarking on those three consecutive fixtures.
But if you’re thinking it’s all against them, Arsène Wenger’s first two doubles were completed with handsome wins over Everton at home on the final day of the season. In 1998, Tony Adams fine goal – created by current Assistant Manager Steve Bould – was sucked into the net by the North Bank.
On 11th May 2002, the last time Everton visited Arsenal on the final day of the season, a 4 – 3 victory was the (eventually) perfect send-off for Lee Dixon and Bob Wilson.
History might just be on Arsenal’s side…
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