Manchester City are easily the best team in the league, arguably the best team in the world. Their manager Pep Guardiola has built a squad which not only dominates its opponents, but also the league. They not only have the best players for each and every position, but they also have a squad so deep with talent that even their second team could win the league. They are creating chances and scoring for fun with their striker Haaland looking likely to breach the 50 goal barrier before the season is through. Their defense is solid and their midfield is world class with De Bruyne, Silva, and Gundogan dominating oppositions like it was child’s play.
Yet surprisingly, they sit second on the points table – 2 points behind the top spot which is currently occupied by Arsenal. The gunners have found a new lease of life under manager Mikel Arteta who has built a young squad in his image and carefully developed them to play an attractive style of football. They have been the second best team behind Man City and have only lost one game in the league so far to Man Utd. They have beaten Liverpool, Tottenham Hotspurs, and Chelsea so far showing they are not pretenders. They unexpectedly sit 1st with 34 points from 13 games played, 2 points ahead of favorites Man City.
Can Arsenal win their first league title since the legendary “invincibles’ campaign of 2003/04?
Chelsea fans call it the apocalypse. Man Utd fans prefer it over Man City or Liverpool winning the league.
In almost any other sport, it would be absolutely impossible for the best team to finish second. But that is football for you. It is not always the best team that wins titles. Just ask Claudio Ranieri. It is one of the things that makes football so popular.
The Gunners have definitely exceeded all expectations and deservedly sit first at least until they face Man City. They do lack the squad depth required to successfully win the title and are inferior to Man City in every department. However, it is not beyond the realm of possibility for them to win despite the presence of Man City and Haaland. They will require a lot of luck in their favor just as Liverpool did in 2019/20 or Leicester City did in 2015/16. You can be sure City will snapping at their heels throughout the campaign, but as long as Arsenal ride their luck and avoid an injury crisis they might just pull it off.
It is ironic that Arteta learnt his trade under the tutelage of Guardiola and now seeks to deny his ex-boss his third successive title. But realistically speaking, it is inevitable that City will eventually take top spot from the gunners. They are among the richest teams in the league and also have the best run setup of them all. Their ownership under the City Football Group has seen them rise to become the dominating force in English football and have hired the best in every possible department. Logic dictates that they should win the title easily by a wide margin. However, the factor of luck plays a huge part in sports and it could very well work against them.
With the next set of fixtures being the last before the World Cup begins, it is important that Arsenal maintains their top spot to give themselves a psychological boost before the PL restarts on Boxing Day. Luckily, they face two teams on a poor run of form next – Wolves on 13th November and West Ham on 27th December. The ideal opponents to keep up the momentum in the title race.
Come May, the league table might look different from what it is today. However, Arsenal are finally showing the fruits of their labor, their patient development finally paying off. There is still room for improvement, but one thing is clear – The gunners are back!
Interesting commentary on how the pecking order gets changed making leadership, coaching and tactics the variables to work on for clubs to become dominant and fight back.