Are Arsenal and Man United really 5-6 years behind Liverpool? by AndersS
The other day, I had the audacity to hint that we are actually not doing so bad with our current 4th spot. It provoked a lot of debate, which is fine.
One of the arguments against my claim, comes up in several discussions, and that is, we are only 4th because others, like Man United, are doing particularly bad this year, so we are not in our “rightful” place.
A very degrading look at ourselves, I think. But is there any truth in it?
We currently have 63 points and 4 games to play. My prediction is, we will finish with something between 66 and 73 points when the season is over. It could of course be less, and we could also win all 4 games and end on 75 points. But I believe 66-73 should cover nearly all probabilities.
Last season (20/21) 3rd place was 69 points and 4th was 67 points. The year before both 3rd and 4th were 66 points. Using that as a yardstick, we are possibly on the way to get more points than 4th in the previous 2 years. Hardly a sign that that we would be getting Top 4, due to abnormal performances by other teams, if we were to get it.
Over the past 6-7 weeks, I have come across some interesting facts about Manchester United, and also something which I find quite astonishing.
Firstly, the facts. If you do a “league table” in the years after Sir Alex Ferguson left Man United at the end of the 2012/13 season and up to the middle of March this year, Manchester United would come in 5th. Just ahead of us.
Now, everybody have been able to see that Man United have been struggling and haven’t challenged for the title in those years. But to me, it was still very surprising to see this. I can add an extra fact. We look like almost certain to finish above them this year, and that will actually be the 6th time in 9 seasons that we finish above them. So, in reality, it is not an odd occurrence, for Man United to be behind us, as some may think.
I admit that I used to think the recipe for success in the PL is fairly easy to understand. It only takes 2 ingredients:
1) Buy a lot of expensive world class players
2) Hire a world class manager to manage
If nothing else, Man United have proved that it isn’t quite so simple. Over the years their spending on players is almost top of the pile. It is right up there with their local rivals, Man City.
And their list of managers who have failed to achieve what was expected, includes at least 2 managers you would call world class. The list also includes a hand picked manager profile (David Moyes), a former player and now an internationally renowned manager, albeit it in a somewhat strange mix of being a temporary manager and partly responsible for selecting the next manager.
No matter how you look at it, Man U have proved that the recipe for a successful team is a bit more complicated.
A team, which have proved they have the right recipe at the moment is Liverpool. Exactly what it is, isn’t quite so obvious. Of course Klopp seems to be the main factor. As I see it, he has built a very strong team with an intense pressing playing style almost all other teams struggle to cope with. But he hasn’t done it through buying a lot of expensive world class players. In his time, Liverpool’s nett spending is below ours, and a lot below that of Man United.
That leads me to the earlier mentioned astonishing thing about Man United. After United lost heavily to Liverpool a couple of weeks ago, their manager Rangnick, was quoted as saying that Man United are six years behind Liverpool!! If that is true, Man United in 9 years have managed to go from being champions to be 6 years behind Liverpool, while spending a h… of a lot more money on players, and on managers too. Some accomplishment, if you ask me.
I wish the press had been a bit more alert, and had asked Rangnick, how he has reached thar conclusion. What exact factors are we talking about, and why exactly 6 years?
Now, I am not blind to the fact that some things can be said “in the heat of the moment”. But nor am I qualified to rule out what an internationally renowned manager says. Even if I were to say that Rangnick has probably exaggerated a bit, I can’t help thinking that getting back to the top for us, is a long process, as it is for Man United. Maybe not 6 years, but certainly some years. I am also convinced it can only be done with a carefully thought out plan, and the right people to implement it.
Do we have that plan?
I think we have plan, which may work. The youth strategy may not have been 100% from the beginning of Arteta’s reign, but I believe it is now, and I believe the whole organization is behind it. An absolute must for any plan, I think. And I don’t see any other trustworthy plans suggested.
Do we have the right people to implement it? That remains to be seen. I think that those claiming, you can’t compare Arteta to Klopp are absolutely right. Klopp’s achievements speak for themselves in that comparison. But where do we find another Klopp? Anyway, the current state to me, is, we are clearly progressing at the moment, and no matter, what happens for the rest of the season, I will eat my hat if Arteta gets sacked before next season.
Whether you are for or against Arteta, I suggest you accept that fact and hope for the best. Maybe even find positives in it. After that, he will still need to show more progress.
Will it take us 6 years? You tell me.
Anders S
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CALLING ALL ARSENAL FANS! Anyone who would like to contribute an Article or Video opinion piece on JustArsenal, please contact us through this link…
Video – Mikel Arteta Talks about Arsenal’s massive win over West Ham, injuries and the team’s “character”