Taking advantage of the fact that both Man City and Man United had to play in the FA Cup quarter-finals, Arsenal crushed Crystal Palace with a resounding 4-1 victory at home at Emirates Stadium on the night of March 19. Six consecutive wins since mid-February have helped coach Mikel Arteta's team stay firmly at the top of the Premier League table, despite all the turmoil on the pitch in the foggy country as the season nears its end.
The Gunners recovered from their midweek penalty shootout defeat to Sporting Lisbon to beat Crystal Palace in the capital derby, pocketing three more points to widen the gap with second-placed Man City to eight points. This is a significant difference with only 10 rounds left in the league, and if they can resolve half of these matches well, Arsenal will have the right to decide the championship title that has eluded them since the 2003-2004 season.
No longer having to stretch themselves for many fronts, Arsenal is quite comfortable with a leisurely match schedule because they no longer have to worry about traveling everywhere and playing 2-3 matches per week. The comfortable frequency of 1 match/week helps Arsenal players maintain their physical strength at their best in the context of the team's lack of squad depth and uniformity in all lines.
Arsenal are closing in on the title they have been waiting for for 19 years. Photo: REUTERS
So far, although only Mohammed Elneny is still out for a long time and actively recovering from injury, Arsenal is still worried about the health of the players under coach Mikel Arteta. Gabriel Jesus and Emile Smith-Rowe were able to return to the field, but immediately, Takehiro Tomiyasu and William Saliba had to return to the bench after both were injured in the match against Sporting Lisbon.
According to experts, at the present stage, Arsenal needs to avoid mistakes in tactical operations to be successful. Both Man City and Man United have to fight on three fronts, it is difficult to avoid distraction or mistakes every time they take the field. Man United no longer has much hope of competing while everyone knows how "thirsty" Pep Guardiola is for the Champions League title with Man City, even if this team has to trade the Premier League title they held since last season.
More than anyone, Arsenal knows that they are getting closer to the highest victory in the Premier League, the title that they have been waiting for for nearly 20 years. Arsenal still has a direct match against Man City at the end of April, and if they win, the Premier League race will immediately end. This condition must occur along with Arsenal winning 7/10 remaining matches to be able to be crowned 2 rounds early.
In case of a stumble against Man City, the Gunners must ensure they do not drop any more points when facing Chelsea, Brighton as well as in the mixed away trips to West Ham, Liverpool and Newcastle.
In misfortune there is luck, being eliminated from the Europa League after stopping early in the two domestic fronts League Cup and FA Cup, although causing a serious decline in performance targets, in return, Arsenal can still be proud of the Premier League title that they have in hand many advantages to take over at the end of the season.
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