Graeme Souness has ruled Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal out of challenging Liverpool for the Premier League title this term, despite our team already showing the kind of fight needed to be champions, and I think we deserve more credit.
The Gunners will make the trip to Anfield to take on the Premier League champions on Monday with a 100% record in tact, after two league wins, a win in the Community Shield against the Reds, as well as having beaten Leicester City in midweek in the Carabao Cup.
Despite their positive start to the campaign, the Scottish former footballer and manager is disregarding our side to build on their impressive 2020 thus far by challenging for the title.
“If Thiago is a signing to top off a team that was already strong enough to retain the Premier League, then Arsenal are nowhere near challenging for it,” Souness told his column at The Times.
“They finished eighth, 43 points behind Liverpool, last season, and that’s not a gap that you close in one transfer window.
“The knockout tournaments are again their best chance of success this season. Trying to retain the FA Cup, a decent run in Europe and maybe the Carabao Cup.”
Mikel Arteta has brought vast improvements at the Emirates in such a short space in time, and almost the whole squad has improved under his guise.
Souness could well have to eat his words come Monday when me make the trip to Anfield, but a win could well force all the critics to stand up and take note that Arsenal need to be considered as challengers for the Premier League this term.
Does Souey need to judge Arteta’s Arsenal on the last 10 months or does our form previously count against us?
Patrick
On this one, he is close to the truth. We love Arsenal but thinking of winning to league is way too high of hope.
Arteta has been great but that we are not suddenly a title will winning side from mid table with little addition. Of course, we can do another Leceister City.
But being realistic, Graeme Souness is right on this
*the league
*title winning side
dont get what it is that Souness said that was so wrong
Only way we start challenging can anyone say we are challenging
if that makes sense lol
👍
West Ham trashed Wolves yesterday but Arsenal fans moan when we won against West Ham. Do we really love arsenal?
Phenom, whether one “loves Arsenal” or not, doesn’t come into it. We all want success for the Club, but must be realistic about performances, not blindly follow.
The performances over the weekend put Arsenal’s wins over West Ham United and Leicester City into perspective. There are no easy games in the EPL. A win is a win; however you get it.
fifa20 City lost
based on fans, city players should be deadwood and must be sold and replaced
Difference is look at what City group of players won in last 5 years ?
And that’s the point , they fail again to win prem they will throw money at it
Because there have been many many false Arsenal dawns before. Souness has high standards for Arsenal. This is a GOOD thing. We should be challenging for EPL and should be in UCL. That is Arsenal standard and that is what pundits want to see and until then they will not take us as seriously as they do City and Liverpool.
👍 Graeme Souness remembers the Arsenal teams he played against and that is the standard he sets.
Like it or not he is right, Souness comes from a generation of intense rough battles and hard men plus has saw what Arsenal were to what they are now. 43points cannot be made up in one window especially after Thiago Signing, hes the cherry on top of the league champions already great squad.
Credit where credit is due for Arsenal but we are no where near challenging just yet… after next summer we will see where we are in terms of progress and that’s UCL at the least.
What I know that we are really progressing based on our performances. We have shown what we can do, inspite of deficiencies. So I have no expectations other than that we will do very well this year. Kind of better performances on game to game basis.
COYG!
What I do know is that*
I respect Souness, he was talented and honest as a player and is the same as a pundit. He also doesn’t subscribe to anti Arsenal rhetoric and just says it as it is. By the way, isn’t this article identical to one yesterday?
Did he just say 43 points in one window.
This is premier league, you can’t just predict things on your own.
Please can we remind him things?
Leicester can back from Championship and won the Premier League. Then why can’t a Premier League tested team win it.
43 points and you’re already predicting things. C’MON THIS IS PREMIER LEAGUE
Don’t let anyone kill the spirit with their own thought
COYG!!!!
Because if you use Leicester theory then technically anyone can win prem
In reality , Leicester are exception to the rule
History shows that the more you invest ,the better chance you have
So has a squad who finished in worse finish in 25 years invested enough to close a 43 point gap ?
Just looking at the number 43 in isolation tells us nothing. Liverpool went from being CL winners, world club cup winners, and PL winners to being knocked out of CL early, failing to win any domestic cups, and losing last matches of season plus community shield. I reckon that team peaked last Christmas. Can they kickstart again? History tells us that’s really difficult. Contrast that with Arsenal who reached their trough in December and have been gradually on an upward trajectory since. At some point the curves might cross. Or not. That’s the fun. Or not. 🥴