United, Leeds (A), Sunderland
We also need to claim every single one of our players is injured for the March international break.
Also it would be great (very unlikely) if city could somehow fuck it in the CL and end up with 2 more games.
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Friendlies arenāt they? Wonāt happen but if the likes of tuchel had any sense heād be telling the likes of Saka and Rice Iām leaving you out for this international break but only if you head to Dubai for the week you wouldāve spent with us. Get a bit of r&r in during a long season that concludes with a huge world cup.
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With a dayās space from yesterdayās game I really am not sure how I feel.
On the one hand, this is a strong, strong position that we should win the league from.
I just have a lingering sense that having the chance to really put City on the brink and not doing it says something about us.
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City should be buried. They arenāt. If Liverpool beat them at Anfield should do it.
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Worried about those 3 tbh.
Elland Road is never an easy place to go to.
United are a bunch of game-raisers.
Sunderlandā¦ look at our last game with themā¦
Will be tough either way. Need all 9 points to kill the rivals dead in their tracks.
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Wonāt be easy but think weāll take 9 from 9 
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Title wrapped if this happens. I reckon 7. Draw against United, not because theyāre good but because of European hangover and win the other two.
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Leeds have been in really good form, no easy game going there.
Sunderland at home worries me less.
Objectively speaking this is a great position to be in.
Just we had two games this week to effectively put any doubt to bed. An 11 point gap would be unfuckable even for us. On paper itās two decent games as well Liverpool weakened and out of form at home and a game against 17th. Didnāt really turn up and the pressure is only going to ramp up.
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Not panicking but certainly not sitting confident and comfortable, not me at least. 3 points against Forest would have made me confident, and 3 points against Liverpool would have made me comfortable.
Feel the same way. Just not ruthless enough to quash Cityās hopes once and for all.
These will be really tough and could define our season especially given who City play in those game weeks. Squad rotation will be key. Can rest players against Inter, then we play United at home, followed by Kairat in the UCL so again we can rest key players, followed by Leeds (A), Chelsea (H) and Sunderland (H).
Calafiori, Havertz, Jesus, Mosquera, Hincapie, MLS, Merino, Nwaneri, Eze should play significant minutes in these games.
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Pretty confident that weāll win it, more because I donāt think weāll have to be flawless to do it.
Honestly we should finish around mid 80s points wise with our run home which would only give City or Villa ( who are next to no hope) 6 points or so wiggle room.
Just donāt think this is a city team thatāll reel off 10 straight wins either.
My prediction is weāll win it by about what we lead the league by now.
Arsenal 86
City 80ish
Villa Mid to low 70s
Shame we couldnāt kill the league off by winning the last 2 league games though.
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Which still isnāt that bad. I think before Guardiola Champions averaged 87 points in the 38-game era. Guardiola, like he did in Spain and Germany, just pushed the ceiling higher.
I donāt think this is a poor side. Rather an incomplete side. We miss that last individual quality on the left winger and striker position to be an all-time great side.
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Yeah we lack of a bit of individual talent quality in the attacking areas of the pitch to an all time top tier side getting 90 + etc
What we are is extremely well coached, so good without the ball, elite defensively and elite on set pieces.
Being defensively much stronger than anyone else is likely to be the difference.
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A long way to go being all time great. Donāt even think current players or Odegaard and Zubi are the solutions if we are to become all time great.
If anything Trossard has been one of our better players on the left. Striker position definitely if we had signed the right profile.
Rather than individual signings - I think the concern is the systematic approach to games. We are too reliant on our back 4 starting the offensive stride, limited central attacking play, too reliant on right wing play and not enough presence from a playmaking perspective.
This conservative approach might signal where football is heading towards or are has reached, I mean how many players in the PL have reached double digits in terms of goals, Haaland being one but even heās going through a drought? This little piece below illustrates the context even more:
https://x.com/hkhaliqueloonat/status/2012913413790277636?s=46
The question is how much of this handicaps us on the other side of the pitch. Because of those rigid instructions defensively and energy spend on pressing etc. Does it cost us in chance creation? Something to assess if we want to get to the next level.
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Just because Trossard is one of our best players that doesnāt mean he is of the level we need.
I think the work our forwards have to put in defensively cost them going forward. City solved that by halving multiple good/great forwards. Sterling, Sane, Bernardo Silva, 2018 they signed Mahrez, Grealish after that, Foden came true. A few seasons they have both Aguero and Jesus. Haaland is just a beast. We probably need to compensate with more bodies for the defensive work our forwards need to do. We have Martinelli and Madueke but they donāt really deliver.
Liverpool solved that, under Klopp, but having three of four midfielders who just could work, work, work and make it easier for Mane and Salah.
The league is so micro-managed now that this is the state itās ended up in. It makes our European endeavours different flavour and we look a completely different team - Iād say that this favours us mostly.
Thereās certainly tweaks to be made to how the team can play, maybe a player or two that could be added but we generally have an amazing outfit of players and a system coached to defensive/out-of-play perfection. Iām fine with that being the case as long as we can edge the results with wins rather than draws. The club went out and purchased a striker that they thought would be the difference in this. The green shoots of that havenāt come through at this point in time (will it ever?). Outside of Haaland, who isnāt looking super-prolific, every other striker has been nullified because half the teams in the league are focusing more on their own defensive structures.
We have options to lean on which will obviously help us over the line in the end I think. Some of those players havenāt been unlocked properly yet and I still think this team have one or two gears to switch up into. The stakes are high and itās very much known given the responses to āThe State of Arsenalā and being in the current position we are right now. Itās most certainly looking good.
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My other concern is why does the style of play have to be so putrid to get results in the game these days? There used to be a good balance between playing good football and getting results. Not necessarily tiki-taka esque, but good attacking displays.
Thereās a handful of games this season where I felt that actually happened - and most of them occurred in non-EPL competitions.
If this style wins us the title, I canāt complain - but it has become a borefest (not just Arsenal).
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I feel like this boring football was always there.
But there was always a decent amount of teams that would play good stuff.
Now I can only think of PSG and maybe Flicks Barca that are maybe a good watch. But not enough to really care to watch their games.
And there is no individual talent any more.
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