It has been a long time since Arsenal found themselves in the Premier League Top 4, with City rivals Tottenham edging over them during last season. Arsenal will play Tottenham on October 2nd for the North London Derby, which might give Arsenal a much-needed boost against their fiercest city rivals.
1. Arsenal's Determination this season
It is a bit hard to imagine that a team that was called the Invisibles during a certain period has fallen from grace. Arsenal is the only team that has won the Premier League without losing a single match in a calendar year, failing to qualify for Champions League football for the third consecutive year.
Gone are the days of Arsene Wegner, who has brought so much success to the club and is the longest-serving manager in English football.
Under his charge, Arsenal became a force to reckon with after coming so close to winning the Champions League in 2006 only to be defeated by Barcelona.
The following years were hard for Arsenal, with disappointments in the league and the Champions League. Arsenal's only solace came from FA Cups and domestic trophies.
As they have witnessed their city rivals reach the Champions League final in 2019, while they are playing in the Europa League, this may be the most bitter pill for Arsenal fans to swallow in recent years.
Arsenal has suffered greatly from poor management and recruitment, as well as a lack of ideology in their game. However, this season might be a different story for the London club, as they have a new sense of belief in themselves. It is reflected now in how Arsenal plays. We all sense that fighting spirit in Arsenal once again to compete on all fronts.
2. Mikel Arteta
After Unai Emery’s period was gone, Arsenal appointed Manchester City Assistant Coach Mikel Arteta. Both Pep Guardiola and Mikel Arteta have worked closely with Manchester City on their success. Both have their ideological roots in Barcelona, and both belief in possession-based football.
Arteta wasn't quick to win the players; he had fallen out with a couple of players in the dressing room; Alexzander Lacazatte and Aubameyang both left under his helm. He organised a very demoralised and unorganised Arsenal team.
He let go of the majority of the players he deemed unfit for Arsenal, including the highly paid Mesut Ozil. He brought in players who are well-suited to possession-based football in an attempt to revive Wegner-styled possession football.
After watching Arsenal play for quite a few matches now, anyone can make out the changes in their team under Arteta. Arteta struggled to settle in for the first time as the fans were not sure of his coaching abilities apart from being the assistant coach to Pep Guardiola.
He brought in several world-class players, including Martin Odegard from Real Madrid and Gabriel Jesus from Manchester City. He has been able to rejuvenate Gabriel Jesus into his best form.
Attackers: Gabriel Jesus Bukayo Saka Martinelli
This season, Arsenal has a variety of forward attacking options to choose from. This season, Mikel Arteta wants to work with those attackers; in previous seasons of Attackers, there was always this drama going on behind the scenes regarding tactics and such.
This season, Arsenal has laid hands on those attackers who understand Mikel Arteta's tactics and know him pretty well.
The acquisition of Gabriel Jesus by Manchester City looks like a tactic to increase the team chemistry. As Jesus and Arteta have worked together in the city, they both know how to work things out and looking at the performance of Jesus, the decision seems quite the right one.
The young pace of Martinelli and Saka adds width to the attacks and makes Arsenal dangerous in crosses. Arsenal has been able to create many chances this season compared to previous seasons. They have also managed to keep most of their shot on target.
Martin Odegard
Brought in from Real Madrid, Odegaard seems to be the real deal for Arsenal. The Norwegian talent was highly rated even before arriving in London.
Odegaard arrived in London looking for minutes to play but thrived under Arteta in that CAM role, which was not provided in Madrid because of the midfield trio of Casemiro, Kroos, and Modric.
With Odegaard, the team improved dramatically, and Arteta now has a perfect player around whom he can build his team.
Odegaard has exquisite passing abilities, which enable the playmaker to freely move the ball around during counterattacks.
Defence
Arsenal has been strong in defence this season. As in previous seasons, Arsenal's defence was horrible to look at. Their defence was disorganised and undisciplined.
This year they have young talents in Gabriel and Saliba in the defence. The advantage of playing young players is that they play to impress, which means they are under the constant pressure of being benched, meaning they have to perform up to the expected standards.
The signing of Zivchenko from Manchester City was also another brilliant move by the Arsenal hierarchy.
Zinchenko was to have worked with Mikel Arteta during his time at Manchester City. The full-back has been important for Guardiola's side in their Premier League dominance.
Gabriel, as centre-back in Saliba, and Zinchenko and Ben White as full-backs, have a strong defensive backline which can hold onto balls, make clearances, and are not shy to tackle opponents.
Their game against Tottenham?
And there it is, the top 5 reasons Arsenal might finish in the top 4 of the Premier League this season. However, they did get a reality check in their defeat against Manchester United, but overall, Arsenal could be a potential challenger to those top 4 spots.
Arsenal currently sits at the top of the table with 18 points after 7 games, losing just 1 to Manchester City in the second.
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