It is the halfway stage of the domestic season for Arsenal and our Premier League rivals and, while the Gunners finally seem to be hitting a bit of form and consistency, it is too early to say that we have put the troubles and struggles of the first half of the season behind us.
Arsene Wenger has often spoke about consistency being vital in the long format of a league campaign and in the past Arsenal have often managed to go on long winning or unbeaten runs, but that has been distinctly lacking this season. And in an interview reported by the Daily Mail, our new striker Danny Welbeck has been talking about the importance of not letting the current run falter as we have done previously.
The England international said, “The most important thing for us is to concentrate on the next game because we can’t afford to look too far ahead.
“We have just got to make sure that we’re ready for each and every game.
“We want to be gaining points and put the pressure on the teams around us.”
If Arsenal can avoid defeat against Southampton on new years day, that will be six games undefeated and that will be the best run for the Gunners since the start of the season, in all competitions. It does not take a genius to work out that this is not good enough for a club like ours.
If you look at just the EPL games, our longest unbeaten run is six games from the start of the season, but only two of those were wins. As well as going unbeaten, Arsenal must start recording more wins. So far our longest winning run in the league is a measly two games. A win at St. Mary’s would break that record, but can Wenger and Arsenal find the consistency that we all know is so important?