Arsenal’s untimely Europa League exit has been lauded as each a blessing and a harmful slackening off however one factor is for sure; it makes the closing phases of the season brutally simple.
In the wake of Thursday’s penalty shootout defeat to Sporting CP, Martin Odegaard declared that the membership had “11 finals” to finish the season. After swatting Crystal Palace apart with a 4-1 victory on Sunday, there are simply ten showpiece occasions left for the Gunners.
With battles towards relegation scrappers, London derbies and a top-of-the-table showdown all to come back, here is what lies forward for Arsenal within the subsequent six of these finals.
Leeds United earned solely their second away win of the Premier League season towards Wolverhampton Wanderers earlier than the March worldwide break. The Yorkshire outfit return to top-flight motion in April with a frightening journey to north London.
Arsenal have by no means misplaced to Leeds within the Emirates Stadium, final tasting defeat within the capital towards the Whites in May 2003 when Mark Viduka nabbed an 89th-minute winner. As they’ve repeatedly proven this season, Arsenal are way more prone to rating a last-gasp purpose than concede one on the loss of life lately.
Arsenal haven’t overwhelmed Liverpool at Anfield within the Premier League since Mikel Arteta was patrolling the midfield relatively than the technical space in 2012.
Jurgen Klopp’s facet have been constantly inconsistent this season however the Reds have maintained their dominant house document this time period, dropping just one house league recreation (to Leeds, by the way). Ominously, Arsenal would be the first visiting workforce to reach at Anfield since Liverpool mauled Manchester United 7-0.
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Arsenal’s European exploits could have been placed on ice till subsequent season’s relatively daunting reintegration into the Champions League however West Ham stay among the many continental elite – properly, the Europa Conference League.
The Hammers are scheduled to host Arsenal three days after duking out the primary leg of their Conference League quarter-final with Gent in Belgium. However, not like a number of the membership’s travelling assist, West Ham haven’t suffered a European hangover this season.
David Moyes’ facet have averaged a degree per recreation in Premier League matches instantly after a continental encounter in comparison with a ratio of 0.89 factors per recreation in any other case. Nevertheless, Arsenal will definitely pose a headache.
Arguably the worst time to face a facet sitting on the foot of the desk is in the direction of the tip of the season when the mix of hope and desperation forges a feverishly aggressive workforce.
During Ruben Selles’ transient reign, Southampton have already taken factors off Chelsea, Manchester United and Tottenham. Arsenal had been held to a draw at St Mary’s when Ralph Hasenhuttl was nonetheless on the helm and should be cautious of changing into one more scalp in Southampton’s scrap for survival.
Since Arteta masterminded a well-known FA Cup semi-final victory towards his former employers behind closed doorways in July 2020, Arsenal have misplaced seven straight matches to Manchester City.
Pep Guardiola’s workforce are the one membership Arteta is but to defeat within the Premier League as a supervisor however Arsenal’s wretched document towards the Sky Blues stretches lengthy earlier than his tenure. The Gunners have misplaced every of their final 11 league video games towards City, scoring 4 targets and transport 29 within the course of.
Arsenal solely scored the one purpose however the Gunners boasted a suffocating stranglehold of the competition after they final confronted Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in November. Arteta’s facet restricted their hosts to only 5 pictures in a 1-0 win, a tally which stays Chelsea’s joint-low in a Premier League recreation this season.
Chelsea might conceivably line up with a wholly totally different assault on the Emirates – a misfiring Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang was flanked by Raheem Sterling and Mason Mount in west London – in a bid to trigger Arsenal a bit extra bother this time round.
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