PART 1
A look ahead at Arsenal’s chances in the 2024-25 season
Two seasons in a row now the Gunners have challenged City all the way, only to fall at the final hurdle. Will it be third time lucky? Or must we endure sky blue celebrations once again?
Back at the top where they belong
Arsenal’s rise back to competing at the top of the English game has of course heightened the expectations of fans but it’s easy to forget that just four seasons ago in Mikel Arteta’s first full season in charge they finished down in 8th place with just 61 points. That compared with last season’s record haul of 89 points (just one point shy of the famous Invincibles) underlines the meteoric impact the Spaniard and his staff have had at the club.
What went wrong last campaign?
It’s so hard to say what went wrong when Arteta and his players got so much right. The prior season people rightfully sighted their record against the ‘Big 6’ for why they missed out on the title, namely the six points dropped to the champions, Manchester City. However this issue was firmly addressed last season as Arteta took a noticeably more pragmatic approach and saw his side go unbeaten in those fixtures, taking four points off City last time round.
Moreover, defensively they looked as good last season as they have since the early Wenger years. Raya’s introduction in goal proved to be another Mikel masterstroke while Saliba and Gabriel look well on their way to being a partnership for the ages. The Gunners finished the season conceding just 29 goals, 5 fewer than City and 15 fewer than the previous campaign - as well as scoring 3 more at the other end.
So where did go wrong then?
In the end the title came down to just two points, so really you can look to any of the individual games in which points were dropped. The only point of the season we can look to where the wheels came off slightly was around Christmas where a draw at Anfield which had initially looked a good result was followed by defeat at home to West Ham and then on the road at Fulham. It’s difficult to pinpoint exactly what happened because injuries were not the issue but perhaps in the first half of the campaign the results were better than the performances and this slip-up came as a wake-up call that spurred on an inspired title push in the new year with Arsenal taking 49 points from a possible 54.
The main difference tactically in this impressive run was moving Kai Havertz into the ‘9’ role where he flourished and justified Arteta’s faith in him. This move allowed for an extra orthodox midfielder and freed up Rice to play an ‘8’ role where he looked more comfortable. Arguably Arteta’s most costly tactical blunder came against Aston Villa where he benched Jorginho and Thomas Partey, moved Havertz back into midfield alongside Rice and played Jesus up front.
…PART 2 arrives tomorrow.
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