Are Arsenal Title Contenders Once Again?
Image Credit: The Athletic
LONDON — It’s fair to say that Arsenal has had a fine start to the season. In fact, it’s their best-ever start to a Premier League campaign. They have played 11 games and have only lost once, winning the other nine, even in the Europa League, where they have won all of their games, securing their ticket to the next stage of the competition.
They have beaten the likes of Tottenham Hotspurs and Liverpool. The team has a cohesiveness that makes them look like a true team. So what has changed for Mikel Arteta’s team, and can they really win the title for the first time in 19 years?
Let’s take a look at how the team looked when Arteta inherited the manager role after the exit of Unai Emery. The former coach recruited several players in the summer of 2019, including Nicolas Pepe and William Saliba from Ligue 1, although Saliba was sent back on loan to Saint-Etienne that same summer to continue his development.
Kieran Tierney was signed from Celtic FC but was injured at the time, so he wasn’t immediately ready for use. Center-backs David Luiz and Pablo Mari, as well as full-back Cedric Soares were all brought in as defensive reinforcements. Gabriel Martinelli was signed from the fourth division of Brazil in the winter but finished the season for Ituano before making his switch to London.
Dani Ceballos was also loaned to the club by Real Madrid to fill in the gap left behind by Welsh midfielder Aaron Ramsey. The usual starting lineup had Bernd Leno in goal and Hector Bellerin and Sead Kolasinac as full-backs. David Luiz and Sokratis were the center-backs, with Matteo Guendouzi and Lucas Torreira in the midfield, Dani Ceballos as an attacking midfielder, Pepe or Mkhitaryan playing right wing, Aubameyang playing left wing, and Lacazette as the main striker.
Image Credit: Premier League
The Gunners went into the season after losing the Europa League Final to Chelsea 4-1 and finished fifth with 70 points in the Premier League. However, they would only win two of their first five games in the league. By the end of November, they would only have 18 points and be eighth on the table. Emery’s final five games would see him draw three and lose two.
Rumors were swirling around that Emery had lost control of the dressing room, especially that of Ozil. He was one of the senior members of the team and was frozen out by Emery following the Europa League final. On November 29, Arsenal made the decision to sack Unai Emery. Former Arsenal player Freddie Ljungberg was given the role of interim manager while the club searched for a replacement. Not too long later, Mikel Arteta was signed onto the club. His only managerial experience was as Guardiola’s right-hand man at Manchester City.
Since his appointment, Arteta has managed the Gunners for 148 games, getting 87 wins, making his win percentage around 58 percent. To compare, Unai Emery had a win percentage of 55.1. After his 76.3 percent at PSG, it’s his highest win percentage of any club. This season though, Arteta boasts a 93 percent win percentage, the highest in Europe at the moment.
He’s brought in many young players, almost all of whom make up the starting XI and the bench. In fact, only two players remain from the Arsene Wenger era: Granit Xhaka and Mohamed Elneny. In terms of Emery signings, there are still quite a few, including Saliba, Martinelli, and Tierney. He was also responsible for promoting academy players Bukayo Saka, Emile Smith Rowe, and Eddie Nketiah. The remainder of the squad is all work done by Arteta and technical director Edu Gasper, another former Gunner. The vision of Arteta is clear; to build a young team with the chance to grow and develop together and become a serious force to be reckoned with beyond the English Isles.
Image Credit: Arsenal.com
One of the things that many fans find tough to admit is that the Kroenkes, owners of the club, have injected the club with money for transfers and development. They feel this because prior to the Arteta era, the Kroenke’s have not put any money into the club to further their development. However, they have been giving money to the club since the Los Angeles Rams, another sports team they own, won the Super Bowl in February earlier this year.
Additionally, fans are reluctant to praise the billionaire family due to their involvement in the Super League scandal from last year. As a result, they and a handful of other mega clubs in Europe planned a breakaway league separate from the UEFA competitions.
The league offered massive winnings if any of the 12 clubs were successful. The organization was organized by Florentino Perez, the president of Real Madrid. The clubs involved were the Big Six from England, which is Arsenal, Chelsea, Tottenham, Liverpool, Manchester City, and Manchester United, along with the big threes of Italy and Spain, which includes Juventus, Inter Milan, AC Milan, Real Madrid, Barcelona, and Atletico Madrid. However, not two days after the announcement, nine out of the 12 clubs withdrew from the competition, which caused its collapse. While Stan Kroenke controls most of his empire, his son, Josh Kroenke, is much closer to the club.
Image Credit: Arsenal.com
Arsenal sits in first in the Premier League table, two points above second-place Manchester City. While many Arsenal fans initially hoped for a top-four finish, the expectations have changed. Many fans are calling for a title finish. The question is, can this be the year?
Arsenal hasn’t won the Premier League title since 2004, when the team consisted of legends such as Thierry Henry, Dennis Bergkamp, Robert Pires, Patrick Viera, Sol Campbell, and many more. The club was managed by legendary coach Arsene Wenger, commonly dubbed as Le Professeur. They finished the 2003/04 season with 90 points, winning 26 games, drawing 12, and losing none. They are the only team in Premier League history to accomplish such a feat. While this current team won’t finish undefeated, is it perhaps possible that they can win the league at long last?