Things could hardly have gone any better for Arsenal yesterday. Not only did we beat the team directly above us in West Ham, leapfrogging Sam Allardyce and his team into the bargain, but none of the other teams above us in the Premier League table won either.
That means that a win for the Gunners at Southampton on Friday along with a home win for Stoke City against Man United, could see Arsenal overtake Louis van Gaal and his Red Devils in the table as well, depending on the scores. Stoke are in very good form, especially at home and United are still struggling with injury problems all over the pitch.
Man City are still without their main striker Sergio Aguero and Edin Dzeko as well and they might not even be back in time to face Arsenal on January 18th. Jose Mourinho is showing signs of strain after his referee rant and his team are showing chinks in the armour as well.
And it is not just the teams above Arsenal that are making our Premier League situation look brighter either. None of the other rivals for a top four place did much either. The spuds drew with Man United and Everton lost. Liverpool take on Swansea tonight and despite Brendan Rodgers’ claim that they had turned a corner, I am not convinced and think that we just made them look good with our own performance.
Of course, Arsenal need to keep up the pressure and keep winning ourselves, but with the transfer window nearly upon us and with players like Ramsey, Ozil and Arteta back soon, I can understand why Arsene Wenger sounded so confident of another top four finish in his interview reported by Arsenal.com.
He said, “It’s vital for us.
“We have done it for 17 years, so we are entitled to the belief that we can do it. It’s all to do because when you look at the league everyone is fighting very hard for it. Southampton, Tottenham, Manchester United, so many teams who can fight for these positions.”
But can Arsenal do any better than fourth this season?