Noah Sparrow
Securing Champions League football for the twentieth consecutive season would undoubtedly be considered an excellent achievement, even if a growing number of fans are becoming angry and disillusioned by a perceived notion that the board are willing to settle for that instead of showing more ambition and doing everything they can to win the Premier League title. However, you would have to be realistic and acknowledge that Arsenal’s chances of finishing in the top four are, at present, extremely doubtful as the team continue to stumble through their annual collapse which shows no sign of ending.
Being humiliated in the Champions League against Bayern Munich may have illustrated the significant gulf between Arsenal and the big guns across Europe, but the manner in which their league form has also taken a hammering has done little to convince many that not only Wenger should remain in charge, but also that finishing in the top four is still more than possibility. Mathematically, there is every chance that Arsenal can claw their back up the table, even if Bookmaker Ratings are amongst those who feel that it is looking unlikely, but given that the team have lost four of our last five league games, can you blame fans for feeling pessimistic about the predicament Arsenal find themselves in?
Eleven games is all that is left for Arsenal to bridge the six-point gap to Liverpool who are currently occupying the final Champions League spot, but the fact they have two games in hand over the Merseysiders is a mere crumb of comfort when you consider just how poor the performances have been lately. Being outplayed by Chelsea and Liverpool is bad enough, but losing 2-1 at home to Watford and then 3-1 away at West Brom via two identical set-piece goals is simply not good enough.
Even the most ardent of Arsenal fans would find it difficult to take any confidence or belief that top four is still a possibility when you consider just how far the team have fallen, and while Wenger has spent most his time blaming referees and linesmen for the recent defeats, it does nothing to paper over the cracks that have emerged in Arsenal’s game. Alexis Sanchez is starting to cut a forlorn and dejected figure as the only attacking player who works his backside off for the cause and can create something out of nothing, while the defensive vulnerability of old has come back to haunt Wenger’s team once again.
However for all the negativity and anger that has enveloped the club in recent weeks, top four is still a possibility. Arsenal do always seem to find a way of making it happen, even when are not playing to their best, but eventually you can get found out if you do not make the necessary improvements or learn from previous mistakes. Having games in hand over Liverpool and Manchester City does improve the chances, with the upcoming game against the latter unquestionably standing out as the biggest game of their season. Bookies may fancy the Gunners to pick up three crucial points as underdogs in their Premier League betting tips, but even though Pep Guardiola’s men have a vulnerable and error-prone defence which can be exploited, keeping the likes of Sergio Aguero, Kevin De Bruyne and Leroy Sane out at the other end may prove a real challenge for the home defence.
It could ultimately come down to a battle of who scores the most goals at the Emirates, and although we have enjoyed some wonderful free-flowing football over the years, I would definitely settle for the scrappiest 1-0 win you have ever seen if it means winning the game. Points are all that matters during the final weeks of the season, especially given how tight it is in the race for a top four finish with two big teams set to miss out; Arsenal have put themselves in a position where there is no room for error, with another slip-up, particularly against the teams around them, likely to prove costly.
Arsene Wenger, who is rumoured to be on the verge of signing a new two-year contract, has plenty to prove amidst growing protests from the fans for him to walk away, and if the manager has any hope of proving his doubters wrong, the least he must d will be to reignite the fire in Arsenal’s belly and lead them to into the top four once again.
