FROM ANFIELD LOSS TO TABLE TOPPERS: THE INCREDIBLE RISE OF MIKEL ARTETA’S GUNNERS
Arsenal looks to extend its lead to 8 points against a struggling Liverpool side. We analyse Arteta’s tactics and the title race.
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Gunners can move eight points clear and take a big step towards the title.
After Arsenal lost at Anfield back in August, the usual crowd of pundits didn’t hold back. The season had just started, but the game already felt loaded—a chance for Liverpool, who’d splashed the cash all summer, to flex their muscles. For Arsenal, it was supposed to be a shot at proving things were different this time.
Didn’t go that way. Szoboszlai curled in a late free kick, Liverpool won 1-0, and honestly, there was barely anything to get excited about. Arsenal managed just one shot on target.
Gary Neville said Arsenal looked like they were “happy not to lose.” Carragher claimed nothing had changed. Peter Schmeichel called their football “ugly.” Liverpool pulled three points clear, and, at that moment, it felt like the old story for Arsenal.
But fast forward 17 games, and the script’s flipped. Arsenal have swung the gap by 17 points and now sit top of the table. The city’s third straight draw on Wednesday cracked the door wide open, and now Arsenal can push eight points clear.
Even months later, you can tell Mikel Arteta hasn’t forgotten the noise after that Anfield defeat. At his press conference this week, he looked a bit exasperated. “People are entitled to their opinions; mine was different, but that’s the beauty of football,” he said. When pressed, he just repeated, “Very different.”
Later, he opened up a bit more. He talked about how people always second-guess the line-up choices, especially when things go wrong. “We know. We know their physical state, probably more, because nobody asked me. Are the other players available to start? Nobody asked. People assume that.
“We have all the information. You guys don’t, and it’s normal, and we don’t want to provide that either. So normally, with the information that you have, you have to make the judgment that, in your opinion, was the best case to win the game. That has to be accepted.”
This time, Arteta and Arsenal don’t want to leave any room for debate. The injury worries have eased, and this is a fierce squad, especially up front. Eberechi Eze hasn’t even gotten on the pitch in the last four games.
The Gunners have taken maximum points from a tough festive stretch and now welcome a Liverpool team that’s stumbling and short on confidence.
Arsenal showed just recently what they’re capable of when they’re out for payback. After losing late at Villa Park, they came home and thrashed Aston Villa 4-1, one of their best performances of the season. You can bet Arteta’s using the sting from Anfield—and all the chatter that followed—as fuel tonight.
At one point, Arsenal’s six-point lead at the top was their biggest ever after 20 Premier League games. Now’s the moment to make it eight, put Liverpool away, and show everyone they mean business in this title race.
ODEGAARD TO UNITED? ARSENAL CAPTAIN REPORTEDLY OPEN TO SHOCK MANCHESTER UNITED SUMMER TRANSFER
Discover why Martin Odegaard is linked to Manchester United and the "broken promises" behind his Arsenal exit.
Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard is facing calls to leave the club after fresh rumours linked him with a move to Manchester United.
Odegaard has been a key player for Arsenal in recent seasons, but this year, things just haven’t clicked. Injuries have thrown him off course, and even when he’s played, he hasn’t looked like his usual self. Now there’s real competition in the squad too, especially with the arrival of Eberechi Eze, who cost the club over £67 million.
Lately, reports have been swirling that Odegaard isn’t happy at Arsenal. FC Barcelona and Bayern Munich are both said to be interested, and talk of a transfer is only heating up.
Earlier this month, Topskills Sports UK claimed that Odegaard told his agent to start talks with Manchester United. According to them, he feels let down by Arsenal’s board and coaching staff, and sources say there’s been tension between him and Mikel Arteta. The report even said Odegaard is “100% willing to leave the club.” Bayern Munich still wants him badly, but Odegaard’s first choice is to stay in the Premier League. It would take something special to lure him to Germany over United.
Now, pundits Steve Nicol and Frank Leboeuf have weighed in, both saying they think it’s time for Odegaard to move on, especially with Eze coming in and Odegaard’s own form dipping.
“Odegaard might be leaving Arsenal,” Nicol told ESPN. “If you’re Odegaard, the club captain, and just 18 months ago you were the main man, suddenly there are doubts about whether you even start because of Eze. And with the way he’s been playing, someone else could leapfrog him, too. So if you’re Martin Odegaard, do you stick around? I don’t think you do.”
Leboeuf agreed: “I’ve always liked Odegaard’s style; he’s elegant, but he’s not as influential anymore. He helps start the play and move the ball sideways, but Eze brings something different. He’s more direct, more influential, and he’ll help Gyokeres as well. It’s going to be tough for Odegaard, and he’s got a big decision to make at the end of the season.”
ARSENAL RULE LONDON: EZE AND GYöKERES SHINE AS GUNNERS DISMANTLE SPURS AT THE LANE
Arsenal dominate the derby! Discover how Eze and Gyökeres fueled a 4-1 win while Spurs sank further into a relegation battle.
For a little while before today’s North London Derby at home between Tottenham and Arsenal, there was some hope. Igor Tudor stepped in for his first match as interim head coach, Dele Alli showed up as a halftime guest, and you could almost believe Spurs might turn their whole season around and spoil Arsenal’s, all in one afternoon.
But that didn’t happen. Arsenal walked away with the win, thanks to two goals each from Eberechi Eze, who, remember, rejected Spurs to join Arsenal, and Victor Gyokeres, their misfiring Swedish striker. Randal Kolo Muani managed to tie things up in the first half just two minutes after Eze’s opener, and he even put the ball in the net again, only for the ref to rule it out after Gabriel Magalhaes hit the turf a bit too dramatically. Richarlison came off the bench in the second half and nearly scored with a clever flick, but David Raya somehow kept it out. Then, in extra time, Gyokeres slammed in another, and Arsenal left with a 4-1 win.
Honestly, Arsenal controlled the match from the start. They had the ball, the stats – everything. Spurs fans can’t help but feel gutted. The team’s stuck in a real relegation fight now, and they need every single point they can scrape together. Losing to Arsenal always stings, but this one? It hurts even more than usual.
That finality you get from moments like Didier Drogba’s penalty after extra time in the 2012 Champions League Final – it’s almost too much. If you really want to understand the pressure and weight of that moment, you’ve got to dig into all the tangled histories leading up to it.
Back to today: Tudor set Spurs up with his usual back three, but he had to improvise. Joao Palhinha and Radu Dragusin lined up next to Micky van de Ven, since Cristian Romero was suspended and Kevin Danso was out hurt. Honestly, Spurs didn’t look that different from how they played under Thomas Frank for most of this season, but there was a bit more energy, a little more purpose, at least at the start. That edge, the one they’ve been missing for months, showed up for a bit, but it just wasn’t enough.
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