Arsenal FC: Frauds or Contenders?

After a disappointing season finishing in 5th place behind local rivals Tottenham, a lot was riding on this season for Arteta and Arsenal. Arsenal has gotten off to a historic start with 8 wins and 1 loss, accumulating 24 out of 27 possible points.

Most of Arsenal’s wins have been against middle to bottom-tier teams. So far this season, Arsenal has faced 3 of the big 6 and has a 2-1 record. They lost 3-1 to Manchester United who has been struggling this season; they are currently in 5th place after bouncing back from a rough start.

Their next big challenge was the north London Derby against Tottenham — one of the most historic and evenly split rivalries in English Football history. Arsenal got the edge and won 3-1 with goals from Jesus, Partey, and Xhaka.

On Sunday, October 9th, Arsenal faced Liverpool at home. Always a tough match that has recently gone in Liverpool’s favor. A thrilling game to watch, Martinelli gave Arsenal the lead after 50 seconds. In the 34th minute, Darwin Nunez scored from close range to level the game. At the end of the half, Arsenal had a beautiful counterattack finished by Saka. In the 53rd minute, Liverpool equalized with a great run from Firmino into open space. In the 75th minute, Jesus went down in the box with little contact and won a penalty which Saka converted (should have won an Oscar for his performance, Neymar taught him well).

Arsenal is still to face their toughest challenge of the season: 2nd place Manchester City. Striker Erling Haaland has scored 15 goals in 9 games; his presence adds to Manchester city’s terrifying attack. As of now, Arsenal is top of the table and they look like serious contenders.

Some people might say that Arsenal is a fraud for not beating “good enough teams” but Manchester City — the best team in the league — drew to Newcastle and Aston Villa which are two of the not-so-good teams. While on paper Manchester City has the best team, Arsenal is on top of the table.

Arsenal seems to be a serious contender for the trophy with 8 wins and 24 points, 1 point above Manchester City. The addition of Gabriel Jesus over the summer has proved vital to the team’s success. The only way to know how their season will shape up is when they eventually play Manchester City.

In the Europa League Arsenal has gotten out to a perfect start, winning all three of their matchups. Their first game was against FC Zurich which Arsenal won 2-1 with goals from Marquis and Eddie Nketiah. In their 2 most recent games, they faced Bodo/Glimt. They won the first meeting 3-0 with goals from Eddie Nketiah, Rob Holding, And Fabio Viera. This Thursday, the 13th of October, they faced Glimt again and won 1-0 with the lone goal from Bukayo Saka, the goal was definitely unusual (according to him it was off of his lip).

Their next league match is against Leeds on Sunday the 16th. They also face PSV in the Europa League on Thursday the 20th. Let’s hope that Arsenal continues their great form and shows the world that the title is ours.