Will Arsenal finally win the title after 19 years?

From mid-tier to top club

There has been a crisis at Arsenal for the past six years. The results of the former top club fluctuated and they even ended up as a mid-tier in the Premier League. They also performed poorly on European level. This was reason enough for club icon Arséne Wenger to leave the club after 22 seasons. Substitute Unai Emery didn’t manage to turn the tables. Their results plummeted even more when he was manager of the club: Arsenal hadn’t played this bad since 1992. The board therefore decided to fire the Spaniard after one and a half season.

The quest for a new manager opened and Arsenal ended up with former football player Mikel Arteta. The Spaniard had been Guardiola’s assistant from 2016 to 2019 at Manchester City. This would be his first job as head coach. Arteta took the club over halfway through the season of 2019/20 and they ended up on a disappointing eight place in the rankings. The following season, the club ended up eight, again, but they did impress many supporters during the second half of the season. They held on to this attitude and finished fifth in the season of 2021/22.

Arsenal has been unstoppable since the season of 2022/23. The Gunners made a great choice by buying striker Gabriel Jesus and defender Oleksandr Zintsjenko. They also started to focus more on the young adult Bukayo Saka and the ‘eternal talent’ Martin Ødegaard, who affected the results this season immensely. Arsenal plays attacking, energetic, tactically strong and stable football. And all of this without a great financial budget, unlike opponent Manchester City.

Why is Arsenal so good this season?

There are two reasons why Arsenal’s results are better this season than the last six: Arteta’s methods and the buying of new players.

Arteta's method

The philosophy of Arteta can be seen clearly on the field. The players play proactively and the rate in ball possession and opponent ball possession is high. It’s not very surprising that Mikel Arteta – former Barcelona and Arsenal football player – follows this method. What is surprising is the effectivity of this way of playing. Besides some excellent footballers, it is Arteta who has created enough support and trust amongst his players to believe in this method. In quite a short period of time and with a restricted budget, the Spaniard succeeded in getting Arsenal back on track.

Excellent footballers

The selection of defenders is way better than previous seasons. This is due to defenders like William Saliba, Gabriel Magalhaes, Ben White and the transferred Oleksandr Zinchenko, who previously played at Manchester City. Thanks to the speed, insight and the football skills of the four, Arteta can afford to defend three to four metres higher than previous seasons. This leads to more pressing, which is why it is easier to gain possession of the ball from the opponent.

Gaining ball possession is Jorginho’s and Partey’s job. Xhaka serves as game maker and Martin Ødegaard ensures assists are made and goals are scored. The amazing balance between defence and midfield is what Arsenal makes so strong now. Especially in combination with fast, creative and nimble forwards like Saka, Gabriel Jesus, Trossard and Martinelli.

The expectations of Arsenal this season

Football fans all over the world are impressed by Arsenal’s results and their astonishingly great football. Guardiola himself even compliments The Gunners’ football and even admits other clubs will have a hard time passing Arsenal in the rankings. Other football legends, like Rio Ferdinand, believe the London club will become champion this season. However, nothing is determined yet, since we’re only halfway through the season and Arsenal didn’t buy many players last winter transfer window, in contrast to opponents.

Arsenal is not only in the race for winning the Premier League title, but they also have a great shot at winning the Europa League title. According to the statistics, it's most likely that Arsenal wins the second most important cup of Europe.

Would you like to visit Arsenal?

The current Premier League frontrunner does not only play attractively attacking football, but the atmosphere at the Emirates Stadium is truly fantastic. There are plenty of reasons to book a football trip to England to see Arsenal shine on the field in the second half of the season. What about, for example, the great match between frontrunners Arsenal – Manchester City on February 15 or the match between neighbours Arsenal and Chelsea on April 29? Book your football trip to Arsenal easily online at our website. Select one of the matches below and visit the beautiful Emirates Stadium. Have fun!