After nineteen years, the Londoners are closer than ever to another Premier League title.
There’s no room for doubt: even if the runner-up ManCity relies on the best striker in Europe, Haaland, and is one of the best teams in the world, Arsenal is heading for title number 14. But Arsenal, as those who saw the last match against Crystal Palace, are very solid, almost impossible to beat.
In attack, Saka does whatever he wants. He has matured and is, at this point, perhaps the best winger on the old continent. On the opposite side, Martinelli is great and scores with a lightness worthy of a thoroughbred striker. And in the middle, Odegaard sets the pace. He does everything De Bruyne did half a decade ago. And then something extra. Arteta’s team is the most modern in the Premier League, playing great football. And then there’s Xhaka. He even scored last weekend. And the fact that Arsenal have been knocked out of Europe represent bad news for the Londoners. By the contrary, it’s good news. The stake for Arsenal is the title in the Premier League, while ManCity will focus on the Champions League and will find it increasingly difficult to keep the pace with Arsenal.
History plays for Arsenal
Elaborate but effective. Spectacular, but without unnecessary risks. Leading Crystal Palace 3-0 and then taking their foot off the acceleration. But seeing how fast Arsenal accelerated in the first hour of the match makes things clear: ManCity needed a miracle to win this title. When they received the goal, they responded promptly through the same fantastic Saka (which passes the best shape of its career, just like Leandro Trossard).
That said, who else can stop Arsenal from staying top? The answer is simple but often bypassed: Arsenal itself. Only Arsenal London can stop Arsenal from winning another title after so many years.
But Arteta’s team, while still a young one, has long since broken away from Wenger’s dream team that played the football of the future at the end of the 20th century, but was terribly naive in defense. Arteta gave today’s youngsters something yesterday’s lacked: balance. Arsenal knows when and how to push, scores easily, masters games that can get tricky, loses points very hard. Of course, City are so close that one could say that Arsenal’s points advantage means nothing. They’d be wrong. Because Arsenal London is very sure of its advantage, it knows how to exploit its strengths. Arsenal has wings.
And, most importantly, it comes with the hunger for results of a giant club deprived almost two decades of a Premier League title. And, unlike for ManCity, history is playing for Arsenal.
