The Run-In thread

[Mac76]

I thought it might be worth having a thread dedicated to the overall run-in.

We now have an international break, during which we can only hope no-one important gets injured.

After that there’s ten games:

Leeds (H)
Liverpool (A)
West Ham (A)
Southampton (H)
Man Citeh (A)
Chelsea (H)
Newcastle (A)
Brighton (H)
Notts Forest (A)
Wolves (H)

Man Citeh’s are:

Liverpool (H)
Southampton (A)
Leicester (H)
Brighton (A) – Date TBC
Arsenal (H)
Fulham (A)
West Ham (H)
Leeds (H)
Everton (A)
Brentford (A) - date TBC
Chelsea (H)

I don’t think we’ll get more than 1 point from Liverpool and Citeh plus Newcastle will be very tricky. Plus there’s some other tricky games, I think Chelsea will be a real challenge by the time they play us.

So we really need Citeh to drop points - hopefully Liverpool could do us a favour but as it's at Citeh I'm not sure they will

Both of us are playing relegation-threatened sides so I'm not srue how that will work out

Citeh do have additional FAC and CL fixtures, but also a much deeper squad full of serial winners and a cyborg striker (who I’m sure is not really injured, they‘re just pulling a fast one with Norway)

if they go deep into both those competitions we have to hope Pep decides the CL is the biggest thing and saves some core players for it

we need to hold up our lead as long as possible to help that take effect, i.e. Pep gives up

If there's any way we could just get a point at Citeh it would be massive -as i said elsewhere, if they beat us in three games this season then we have to say they're better than us and deserve it

[Marc Overmars]

I’m just going to assume City will win all their games. We need to take care of ourselves.

[Letters]

I can't see City dropping many points. :(
Liverpool might do us a favour, after that they should be winning most of those.
Absolutely can't lose at the Ethiad, but fear we will.
:ilt:

[Mac76]

That's what I keep running up against whenever I think we could do it - we played really well against Fulham and Palace, but have stiffer tests to come and I just think Liverpool and Citeh will be too strong for us, plus we have some injuries now and may get more

One thing i don't subscribe to is that this is our best chance - i think our team's mentality can only get stronger and with CL football plus a 1st/2nd place in the PL we wil be able to strenghen in the summer

[mandela8]

I’m just going to assume City will win all their games. We need to take care of ourselves.

If that's the case arsenal have to win all but the City game.

I think City are favorites, man. Call me negative but their tough games are mostly at home. Arsenal's are away. Lose at City, which is the most likely result, then even drawing another game would allow City to takeover on goal difference.

That said, 10 games is a huge chunk of a season and there'll be unexpected points dropped by both teams.

[Letters]

One thing i don't subscribe to is that this is our best chance - i think our team's mentality can only get stronger and with CL football plus a 1st/2nd place in the PL we wil be able to strenghen in the summer
You’re right about strengthening, but other clubs will too.
City aren’t going away. Utd are looking to be on an upward curve. Chelsea and Liverpool will surely be better next year and Newcastle look likely to spend big this summer. That’s why I think it’s now or never.

[mandela8]

You’re right about strengthening, but other clubs will too.
City aren’t going away. Utd are looking to be on an upward curve. Chelsea and Liverpool will surely be better next year and Newcastle look likely to spend big this summer. That’s why I think it’s now or never.

Arsenal have a bit of an edge here in that the way the squad has been built around youth means it should naturally mature/improve over time. That's "the process". I think we've seen it this season. If we see a better Ramsdale, Gabriel, Saliba, White, Odegaard, Saka, Martinelli et al, then supplement that with a marquee signing or two Arsenal could strengthen more with less.

Not often I'm optimistic about arsenal, so that's about the best you get.

[McNamara That Ghost...]

Man City have to win every game really, don't think anything else will do them.

I don't think you can go from winning 3 maximum in a row win the league all season to then winning what would be 14 in a row.

[Marc Overmars]

If that's the case arsenal have to win all but the City game.

I think City are favorites, man. Call me negative but their tough games are mostly at home. Arsenal's are away. Lose at City, which is the most likely result, then even drawing another game would allow City to takeover on goal difference.

That said, 10 games is a huge chunk of a season and there'll be unexpected points dropped by both teams.

There are only 2 games I think we may realistically lose. Liverpool is possibly 50/50 given their flaky form but City will certainly be expected to beat us. I’d have them as slight favourites too simply because of the history we’ve got in these games. We haven’t taken a point at Anfield or the Etihad since 2016 FFS.

As you say though, plenty of scope for both of us to drop some unexpected points along the way so it’s not as simple as we like to think.

I don’t think I’m ever getting over this if we don’t bring it home. Cannot tell you how gut wrenching it would be to miss out on the home straight having lead the way for practically the entire season so far. :sick:

[Letters]

I don’t think I’m ever getting over this if we don’t bring it home. Cannot tell you how gut wrenching it would be to miss out on the home straight having lead the way for practically the entire season so far. :sick:
David Pleat: I think in a way if Arsenal are to lose a Championship having
had such a lead at one time its somewhat poetic justice that they have got
the result on the last day even if their not to win it.

Brian Moore: They would see that as small consolation David


It’s going to be a weird one because we whatever happens we have massively exceeded expectations. But yeah, to miss out having come this far would be pretty gutting :sick:

[Letters]

Man City have to win every game really, don't think anything else will do them.
Why do you think that?
They’ve got a game in hand. Win that and the gap is only 5 points. Beat us and it’s 2. That’s only us drawing while they win and they’re above us on GD. Given our run in I’d say that’s all fairly plausible.
The hope is we will get a point at The Ethiad and City will be focusing more on the CL and slip up here and there.

[McNamara That Ghost...]

Simply because I think we'll win most of ours. If they drop points and we gain, well they need another game needed, possibly two to get it back in their favour.

And there aren't many games to get them back in.

If Man City replicate the amount of points they got in the last 11 games last season it puts them on 91. I don't think that will be enough.

[Ollie the Optimist]

Why do you think that?
They’ve got a game in hand. Win that and the gap is only 5 points. Beat us and it’s 2. That’s only us drawing while they win and they’re above us on GD. Given our run in I’d say that’s all fairly plausible.
The hope is we will get a point at The Ethiad and City will be focusing more on the CL and slip up here and there.

Of course missing out on the title would be gutting at this stage given how close we are for hte first time in 20 years.

But this season has been one of the most enjoyable to follow arsenal for years. We have actually turned up and won big games both home & away. I dont think i have celebrated a winner as much as i did Nketiah’s against united (i missed the end of Bournemouth game) because for the first time in years, that winner actually meant something. It took us clear at the top etc rather than just a good win after a miserable run like previous years.

Of course trophies matter but i suspect many would rather follow this team this year & come up short then the previous years of top four battles, miles off a title challenge, dull football & perhaps an FA Cup win.

[Letters]

Confident Maccy :bow:

The 6 "easiest" ones I think we'll win. It's the other 4 which worry me. Anfield has been a graveyard for us. City spank us every time we play them.
Less worried about the other 2 but they're not gimmes.

[Mac76]

Of course trophies matter but i suspect many would rather follow this team this year & come up short then the previous years of top four battles, miles off a title challenge, dull football & perhaps an FA Cup win.

I agree, we've a young team who can only get better so it would bode well for the future either way.

Teh really gutting thing though would be if we lost it by 1 or 2 points, i.e. the points we were denied by VAR in the Brentford game.

[Mac76]

Confident Maccy :bow:

The 6 "easiest" ones I think we'll win. It's the other 4 which worry me. Anfield has been a graveyard for us. City spank us every time we play them.
Less worried about the other 2 but they're not gimmes.

so one of those tricky ones is no doubt Newcastle away, what do you think the other one is? I think Chelsea will be tricky even though it's at our place - Brighton won't be that easy either, they're scoring for fun atm

[Letters]

so one of those tricky ones is no doubt Newcastle away, what do you think the other one is? I think Chelsea will be tricky even though it's at our place - Brighton won't be that easy either, they're scoring for fun atm

Yes, Chelsea at home is the other one I meant. Should win, but they'll probably raise their game against us.

[HCZ_Reborn]

If that's the case arsenal have to win all but the City game.

I think City are favorites, man. Call me negative but their tough games are mostly at home. Arsenal's are away. Lose at City, which is the most likely result, then even drawing another game would allow City to takeover on goal difference.

That said, 10 games is a huge chunk of a season and there'll be unexpected points dropped by both teams.

As much as it sickens me to say this, I agree

City do have the easier fixtures in that they have to play their hardest games at home

They have an 84% win record at home this season (having beaten all but Brentford and Everton)

Them beating us at home does seem the likeliest outcome (we’ve won 11 away games this season but we’ve only played further north than the midlands three times and lost two of those)

It’s not to say we can’t beat them or get a draw, it’s just not the most likeliest outcome


However I caveat this by saying I find it hard to imagine that they won’t drop points away from home from their remaining five fixtures (Brighton, Brentford, Fulham, Southampton, Everton)

I think you could argue that the one point from three games in February really harmed us in terms of not creating a cushion…..coming into April.

But yeah I’d say I was hopeful more than Optimistic

[mandela8]

Man City have to win every game really, don't think anything else will do them.

I don't think you can go from winning 3 maximum in a row win the league all season to then winning what would be 14 in a row.

I don't think they do though.

I think Arsenal get around 16-18 points from here out.

[mandela8]

I find no solace in the fixture math but, I tell you what, I sat and watched City against Fulham (the only time I've seen them other than against arsenal) and I was genuinely surprised at how shit they were. Equally surprising neither KdB or Foden played which could explain the poor performance but I'm really hopeful they drop those bonus unexpected points

[McNamara That Ghost...]

I don't think they do though.

I think Arsenal get around 16-18 points from here out.

If that happens, then I agree, I think we're toast.

It would be incredibly disappointing to drop 16 points in the final 10, when we've dropped only 15 In the previous 28.

[Marc Overmars]

I find no solace in the fixture math but, I tell you what, I sat and watched City against Fulham (the only time I've seen them other than against arsenal) and I was genuinely surprised at how shit they were. Equally surprising neither KdB or Foden played which could explain the poor performance but I'm really hopeful they drop those bonus unexpected points

Yeah they haven’t looked great but they’re still within sight of us, which is the worry considering how excellent we’ve been!

End of the day we’re up against a powerhouse who’ve done this for years while this is completely new for us. The pessimism is understandable but I hope that fearlessness we’ve shown so far carries us over the line.

[Letters]

If we beat Leeds and Liverpool do us a favour then we’ll be in a very strong position.
One could argue we are already are, but having yet to go to Newcastle, Liverpool and City we are in a slightly false position. But we’ve passed a fair number of tests so far.

[Mac76]

Liverpool having a good day next weekend would certainly be very useful...

[mandela8]

If that happens, then I agree, I think we're toast.

It would be incredibly disappointing to drop 16 points in the final 10, when we've dropped only 15 In the previous 28.

Hope I'm wrong but context is key here.
It's probably 3 of the 4 toughest games of the season (lost the other one at Old Trafford). That could be 7-9 points dropped with games against Chelsea, Brighton and away to west ham to play too...it's just a real tough run of games, man.

Knowing arsenal they'll win a couple of those then lose at home to Southampton, ffs :(

[Chippy]

Hope I'm wrong but context is key here.
It's probably 3 of the 4 toughest games of the season (lost the other one at Old Trafford). That could be 7-9 points dropped with games against Chelsea, Brighton and away to west ham to play too...it's just a real tough run of games, man.

Knowing arsenal they'll win a couple of those then lose at home to Southampton, ffs :(

We would have bitten off an arm if someone had said we would be runners up this season. Anything else is a massive bonus.

[Mac76]

We would have bitten off an arm if someone had said we would be runners up this season. Anything else is a massive bonus.

Except with having led for so long it will be disappointing, I thought when Citeh briefly went ahead it was all over, this team keeps surprising me and the longer it goes on the harder it will be if we don't make it

[McNamara That Ghost...]

https://youtube.com/shorts/7B6AAaQM30Y?feature=share

Rodri trying to do him I think. Ball was long gone.

At the very least he knows exactly what he is doing.

[Mac76]

The video's down - no lasting damage I hope?

I wish we'd been savvy enough to say some of our key players were 'injured' like Citeh and Man Ure have, to keep them out of these games

[McNamara That Ghost...]

The video's down - no lasting damage I hope?

I wish we'd been savvy enough to say some of our key players were 'injured' like Citeh and Man Ure have, to keep them out of these games

Copyright strike I guess. Put another link in now.

[Marc Overmars]

Scummy and marginal gains.

[Mac76]

Copyright strike I guess. Put another link in now.

That's outrageous, definite red and a pel

[McNamara That Ghost...]

Neither happened. :lol:

[McNamara That Ghost...]

Foden had surgery for appendicitis.

[Letters]

Except with having led for so long it will be disappointing, I thought when Citeh briefly went ahead it was all over, this team keeps surprising me and the longer it goes on the harder it will be if we don't make it
:good:

It will be bittersweet if we miss out.
It would have been completely unreasonable to expect a title challenge this year given where we’ve been over the last few season. So whatever happens it’s been an incredible effort. But to miss out having come so far will be hard to take.

:(

[HCZ_Reborn]

:good:

It will be bittersweet if we miss out.
It would have been completely unreasonable to expect a title challenge this year given where we’ve been over the last few season. So whatever happens it’s been an incredible effort. But to miss out having come so far will be hard to take.

:(

I will be disappointed for sure but at no point have I expected that we would win the title

Simply because of the having to play City and Liverpool away from home in April, we don’t have enough of a cushion to say we can lose those games and win the league and we’ve lost in those fixtures going back to 2016

That’s not me saying we will lose both games, I’m reasonably hopeful of getting something at Anfield. And I do think we can beat City….but I wouldn’t make us favourites for either game I would make the home sides so.

I’m always disappointed to lose any game. But as I’ve said earlier in this thread, I’m hopeful not expectant of the title

[Letters]

I will be disappointed for sure but at no point have I expected that we would win the title

Simply because of the having to play City and Liverpool away from home in April, we don’t have enough of a cushion to say we can lose those games and win the league and we’ve lost in those fixtures going back to 2016

That’s not me saying we will lose both games, I’m reasonably hopeful of getting something at Anfield. And I do think we can beat City….but I wouldn’t make us favourites for either game I would make the home sides so.

I’m always disappointed to lose any game. But as I’ve said earlier in this thread, I’m hopeful not expectant of the title
I’ve never “expected” us to.
Up until the World Cup I never seriously contemplated it as a possibility. We’d started the season better than any of us had a right to expect, but I couldn’t see us sustaining it.
A mate has said to me a couple of times that if we don’t do it then it will be the biggest collapse since Newcastle in 1996. That is obvious bollocks and I suspect he’s trolling me (he is a bit like that).
His reasoning, on cross examination, is that Arsenal were 8 points clear at the turn of the year. We were, but as I have patiently explained to him, because of the World Cup that was only 16 games in. To compare that to Newcastle who were 9 points clear with a game in hand after 24 games is absurd.
Anyway, it always felt to me that City would just bulldoze us. Our squad depth was lacking, theirs isn’t and they’ve been there and done it multiple times before.

But after the World Cup we just kept going. I’ve found you just get a feeling about a title winning side, and after the Spurs and Utd games I got that feeling. They just kept passing the tests. We’d done good business in January to address the squad depth. It started to feel like we had a real chance.

But…then we had the wobble. City rolled us over too easily. You don’t lose at home to your rivals in a title winning season. But the response has been fantastic and we’ve given ourselves a real chance again. I can’t help feeling City will reel us in, but I’m hoping they get so embroiled in the cup competitions they slip up a few times. If City win the games they “should” win then with our run in I don’t think we have a chance.

[WMUG]

I’ve never “expected” us to.
Up until the World Cup I never seriously contemplated it as a possibility. We’d started the season better than any of us had a right to expect, but I couldn’t see us sustaining it.
A mate has said to me a couple of times that if we don’t do it then it will be the biggest collapse since Newcastle in 1996. That is obvious bollocks and I suspect he’s trolling me (he is a bit like that).
His reasoning, on cross examination, is that Arsenal were 8 points clear at the turn of the year. We were, but as I have patiently explained to him, because of the World Cup that was only 16 games in. To compare that to Newcastle who were 9 points clear with a game in hand after 24 games is absurd.

Well if it's the biggest bottle since Newcastle, that would imply that the Newcastle one is still bigger than this would be ;)

But then you have United in 2012 so yeah.

[Letters]

Well if it's the biggest bottle since Newcastle, that would imply that the Newcastle one is still bigger than this would be ;)

I don't think he's claiming that this would be worse, but even comparison to that seems ridiculous to me.
We've never been so far clear that it was "ours to lose". Sure, it was 8 points at the turn of the year but with 16 games gone that's far too early to be planning the open top bus parade route.

[selassie]

I’m just going to assume City will win all their games. We need to take care of ourselves.

I am leaning towards thinking this too. We are going to need to have an almost flawless run-in points wise IMO because I think City will.

[selassie]

That's what I keep running up against whenever I think we could do it - we played really well against Fulham and Palace, but have stiffer tests to come and I just think Liverpool and Citeh will be too strong for us, plus we have some injuries now and may get more

One thing i don't subscribe to is that this is our best chance - i think our team's mentality can only get stronger and with CL football plus a 1st/2nd place in the PL we wil be able to strenghen in the summer

Totally agree with this, especially the bit in bold. I don't have a crystal ball but this team / squad looks like it's ready to compete for the big prizes going forward, we are not top of the league by luck, the performances back up the results. I also think Arteta and Edu are extremely ambitious and will keep on improving and evolving the quality of the squad.

Irrespective of what happens this season, I would hope we are challenging for the title next season too.

[WMUG]

End of the day we’re up against a powerhouse who’ve done this for years while this is completely new for us.

It's not completely new to us. We have Jesus and Zinchenko who were part of that powerhouse only last year. Both have experience of this kind of run and will be sharing that experience with the rest of the team.

Obviously they have more players with experience in a title fight, but our squad isn't full of novices.

[selassie]

Hope I'm wrong but context is key here.
It's probably 3 of the 4 toughest games of the season (lost the other one at Old Trafford). That could be 7-9 points dropped with games against Chelsea, Brighton and away to west ham to play too...it's just a real tough run of games, man.

Knowing arsenal they'll win a couple of those then lose at home to Southampton, ffs :(

I agree, though I look at it more as we have 10 cup finals to go and each game is going to be equally as tough, I hope that's how the players are looking at things. Over the past month in games such as Villa away and Bournemouth at home we have rocked at times but managed to navigate our way through the challenges, I think there is more of that to come and not necessarily in the games we think we may drop points in. Stakes are really high now, we all know as do the players, literally we have to treat every game as a Cup Final now.

[Ollie the Optimist]

It's not completely new to us. We have Jesus and Zinchenko who were part of that powerhouse only last year. Both have experience of this kind of run and will be sharing that experience with the rest of the team.

Obviously they have more players with experience in a title fight, but our squad isn't full of novices.

I suppose that also applies to the manager as well.

[Marc Overmars]

It's not completely new to us. We have Jesus and Zinchenko who were part of that powerhouse only last year. Both have experience of this kind of run and will be sharing that experience with the rest of the team.

Obviously they have more players with experience in a title fight, but our squad isn't full of novices.

For sure, we have some players with that experience to lean on but conversely a lot of our players haven’t even played in the CL.

I think experiencing that failure last year can help though.

[Chippy]

Partey is now a doubt for Saturday along with Saliba.
I just hope injuries do not derail a blinding season.

[selassie]

Partey is now a doubt for Saturday along with Saliba.
I just hope injuries do not derail a blinding season.

https://twitter.com/TalkingHighbury/status/1640614826991841285?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5 Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1640614826991841285%7Ctwgr% 5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=


Thomas Partey will fly back to Arsenal. Partey felt something in his right leg during a training session on Sunday, Sources close to the player insist it is not a hamstring issue and believes he should be fine for Saturday's game.

Sounds like he may be ok for Saturday, he sat out the 2nd Ghana game as a precaution.

Partey is a great player but his constant injury niggles are a massive headache, need one of Rice or Caicedo in the summer so we can properly rotate Partey going forward.

P.S. The silence on Saliba's injury is worrying, we absolutely need him for the run-in, especially for those tough away games.

[HCZ_Reborn]

Partey is now a doubt for Saturday along with Saliba.
I just hope injuries do not derail a blinding season.

Partey is not a doubt for Saturday

Saliba is a doubt for the rest of the season. Which means that we would have no chance of winning the title and would possibly sputter our way into the top 2. Playing Holding at centre back means almost certain defeat against Liverpool and City

[Marc Overmars]

If Saliba is done that’s a horrible blow. Given the radio silence I’m inclined to believe the injury is worse than originally feared. Holding is unlikely to play at a high level every week and who knows if Kiwior is good enough or not.

[Mac76]

it's a shame Kiwior hasn't had more minutes

Holding was very good against Palace but as MO says not sure he'll keep the standard up and Liverpool and Citeh are obviously a much stiffer task - we'll just have to hope he can rise to the occasion but not having Saliba is a major dent to our title hopes

[Chippy]

it's a shame Kiwior hasn't had more minutes

Holding was very good against Palace but as MO says not sure he'll keep the standard up and Liverpool and Citeh are obviously a much stiffer task - we'll just have to hope he can rise to the occasion but not having Saliba is a major dent to our title hopes

Saliba will be back against Leeds. No problem.
In other news...... Tierney is fucking injured AGAIN.
Sell him, he's dead.

[Mac76]

Saliba will be back against Leeds. No problem.
In other news...... Tierney is fucking injured AGAIN.
Sell him, he's dead.

it happens pretty much every time he plays for effing Scotland

[Letters]

Saliba will be back against Leeds. No problem.
In other news...... Tierney is fucking injured AGAIN.
Sell him, he's dead.

I'm very disappointed about Tierney. Seemed like future Arsenal captain material but he's not progressed.

[IBK]

Saliba will be back against Leeds. No problem.
In other news...... Tierney is fucking injured AGAIN.
Sell him, he's dead.

Was it that Rodri tackle, do we know?

[IBK]

Saliba will be back against Leeds. No problem.
In other news...... Tierney is fucking injured AGAIN.
Sell him, he's dead.

Was it that Rodri tackle, do we know?

[Mac76]

I'm very disappointed about Tierney. Seemed like future Arsenal captain material but he's not progressed.

It's hard to progress when you're starved of playing time and if, when you do get on, you're played completely out of position

suddenly playing two high-pressure matches in three days is bound to potentially lead to injury

[WMUG]

Haaland out for several games :cheer:

[selassie]

it's a shame Kiwior hasn't had more minutes

Holding was very good against Palace but as MO says not sure he'll keep the standard up and Liverpool and Citeh are obviously a much stiffer task - we'll just have to hope he can rise to the occasion but not having Saliba is a major dent to our title hopes

If Saliba misses ther Liverpool and Citeh games then the title is over IMO. Honestly can't see us getting anything out of either game with a weakened backline.

[Mac76]

Haaland out for several games :cheer:

He's back now :(

[Chippy]

He's back now :(

Makes no difference at all. They score more without him tbh.

[HCZ_Reborn]

He's back now :(

The interesting thing about Haaland is that he’s a freak of nature goal machine on one hand, but City play better without him on the other.

[Mac76]

IKR but in general they're ominously good atm, he's now had a rest and is probably due another hatter, still c'mon Saints

[selassie]

IKR but in general they're ominously good atm, he's now had a rest and is probably due another hatter, still c'mon Saints

We are going to need to be near perfect in the run-in points wise to secure the Title IMO. City are definitely back now, no room for errors from us.

[HCZ_Reborn]

Our game against Chelsea has been moved from Saturday 29th April to Tuesday 2nd May. Although I can’t imagine supporters going to the game will be pleased this gives us six days rest after the Man City fixture

[Mac76]

Our game against Chelsea has been moved from Saturday 29th April to Tuesday 2nd May. Although I can’t imagine supporters going to the game will be pleased this gives us six days rest after the Man City fixture

I didn't think much about this at the time, but listening to the Arsecast about it last night, it's fucking outrageous, something to do with the police wanting to be on holiday before the bullshit coronation of King Bigears and the King's Escort

As they pointed out on the pod, fans will have booked travel and accomodation and it might have been their only chance to go to a game this season

But of course because there's always so much trouble at games :rolleyes: they had to move it so they could have loads of police sitting on horses spreading manure everywhere

They don't just put the fans last in the queue for consideration, they're just not there at all

[HCZ_Reborn]

Being a selfish prick that I am, and not likely to pay the £200 quid it would cost me to buy a ticket for this game…my thoughts are more centred around us having a six day break after the city game. But yeah you’re not wrong, to move a fixture like this with such short notice is utter bullshit. Even with the NLD you don’t really get fan trouble as long as it’s properly policed…..and the MET will be getting plenty of support from other forces on the day of the coronation.

There is a london derby between Spurs and Palace that is scheduled for May 6th, if that doesn’t get rescheduled as well will have big questions

[Mac76]

So to update:

Remaining Arsenal fixtures:

Man Citeh (A)
Chelsea (H)
Newcastle (A)
Brighton (H)
Notts Forest (A)
Wolves (H)

Man City fixtures:

Arsenal (H)
Fulham (A)
West Ham (H)
Leeds (H)
Everton (A)
Chelsea (H)
Brighton (A)
Brentford (A)


All we're playing for is pride now, but given our current form it's hard to see where we get three points next, if we can't do it at home to Saints when can we? my instinct is that Saliba's pretty much out for the season so our defence is going to be very makeshift right up to the end

i suppose we could hope Forest will already be down when we play them but as we know, already-relegated teams sometimes play very well, with the pressure off and the players hoping to move club

Other than maybe Brighton away, I can't see Citeh slipping up anywhere

we could easily finish 10 points or more behind them the way things are going

I hope that's cheered you all up :lol:

[HCZ_Reborn]

So to update:

Remaining Arsenal fixtures:

Man Citeh (A)
Chelsea (H)
Newcastle (A)
Brighton (H)
Notts Forest (A)
Wolves (H)

Man City fixtures:

Arsenal (H)
Fulham (A)
West Ham (H)
Leeds (H)
Everton (A)
Chelsea (H)
Brighton (A)
Brentford (A)


All we're playing for is pride now, but given our current form it's hard to see where we get three points next, if we can't do it at home to Saints when can we? my instinct is that Saliba's pretty much out for the season so our defence is going to be very makeshift right up to the end

i suppose we could hope Forest will already be down when we play them but as we know, already-relegated teams sometimes play very well, with the pressure off and the players hoping to move club

Other than maybe Brighton away, I can't see Citeh slipping up anywhere

we could easily finish 10 points or more behind them the way things are going

I hope that's cheered you all up :lol:


Unlikely….most likely we will start winning again after the City game….because in the mind of the players the title will be over and they won’t be as nervous.

We will beat Chelsea, draw with Newcastle - Beat Brighton, Forest and Wolves

Finishing on 88 points


City will get 20 points from those remaining 8 games finishing 2 points ahead on 90

Think they will draw with Brighton and Brentford but they’d have sealed the title by then so won’t matter

[HCZ_Reborn]

On top of that I think City will crumble again in the semis and they’ll have to be content with the league and cup double

[Marc Overmars]

It’s done.

This would be a miraculous title win if it happened now. It’s not impossible but it would be take a really special effort now from us to get it back in our butterfingers.

[Letters]

It’s done.

This would be a miraculous title win if it happened now. It’s not impossible but it would be take a really special effort now from us to get it back in our butterfingers.

A win on Wednesday would make me believe it's possible again, but we all know that isn't going to happen.

[Mac76]

Remaining Arsenal (81pts) fixtures:

Brighton (H)
Notts Forest (A)
Wolves (H)

Man City (82 pts) fixtures:

Everton (A)
Chelsea (H)
Brighton (A)
Brentford (A)

City's GD is effectively an additional point, so we need them to drop 5 points in these games, something they've shown little sign of doing, hence this not really being a 'title race', but as people have been saying we need to run them as close as we can

We also need to be giving players like Tierney and Nelson plenty of minutes in these games to try and hang on to them - as Tierney showed yesterday, these two things aren't mutually exclusive, if we'd brought him on at a similar time in the Liverpool game we'd almost certainly have won it

[HCZ_Reborn]

If I recall Tierney although played well yesterday was terrible against Liverpool. Not to do with when in the game he came on, he looked out of condition. In terms of tactics the worst thing Arteta did that day was to replace Odegaard with Kiwior.

I think West Ham and Southampton were really the two games that killed our title chances

Should have won both comfortably, yes we’d be at a disadvantage in the title race but City would go into those games knowing they had to win all four. They need only three wins from four to guarantee the title now.

Everton? Are dead and buried. They’ve just completely given up

Chelsea. It’s as much as they can do to win at Bournemouth

Brighton…can spring a surprise

Which leaves Brentford…and possibly a title race decided on the last day like last season

[Mac76]

The thing is, IMO the Liverpool turnaround is the reason we folded against West Ham and struggled against Saints, we lost our composure after playing so well at Anfield but then chucking it away

And exactly, if Tierney wasn't his best at Anfield it's precisley because Arteta has criminally underplayed him

We had the title won, it's actually nothing to do with City, Arteta blew it by not using his squad effectively

We desperately need to hang on to the squad players we'll need next season, lose them and it could be a pretty painful watch next time around

[Marc Overmars]

Not really convinced we’ll beat Brighton at home anyway. We’re so generous at the Emirates and a team like Brighton would definitely exploit those periods of the game when we start sleep walking.

[HCZ_Reborn]

The thing is, IMO the Liverpool turnaround is the reason we folded against West Ham and struggled against Saints, we lost our composure after playing so well at Anfield but then chucking it away

And exactly, if Tierney wasn't his best at Anfield it's precisley because Arteta has criminally underplayed him

We had the title won, it's actually nothing to do with City, Arteta blew it by not using his squad effectively

We desperately need to hang on to the squad players we'll need next season, lose them and it could be a pretty painful watch next time around

We did blow it but never in a million years did we have the title won

Had we won at Anfield would we have won the title? Maybe we’d have still lost at city and no guarantee we’d have got the result we did yesterday.

[Mac76]

a look at the table tells you that if we'd beaten Liverpool ,W Ham ansd Saints we'd have ended up top regardless of the City result, all else staying the same

I don't know why you bring the Newcastle game into question, we won it, end of

[McNamara That Ghost...]

Hopefully Citeh drop points in one game before Brighton so at least it could go to the final day - as I'm absolutely sure they will beat Brighton if the title can be won that game. And I think they'll beat them anyway.

Realistically them dropping points in another after that isn't likely.

Get to 90 points and I can't really say anything too negatively about this team.

[HCZ_Reborn]

a look at the table tells you that if we'd beaten Liverpool ,W Ham ansd Saints we'd have ended up top regardless of the City result, all else staying the same

I don't know why you bring the Newcastle game into question, we won it, end of


Because who is to say If we’d beaten Liverpool, West Ham and Southampton that we’d have beaten Newcastle

Could if not equally be possible that the city loss would have started a collapse?

But on top of that, win our next three games that’s 28 wins from 38 games. That this is not enough to win the title says that it very much is about City. Of course we should have done better in the four games we dropped points


But then again we should not have lost to Man United, we should have beaten Southampton away from home , Newcastle and Brentford at home. The fact is as stubborn as Arteta is for not rotating….before five years ago or so you would expect to be on course to win the title on our points accumulation and there would be an expectation throughout the season that points will be dropped.
Who is to know if we’d have beaten West Ham and Southampton if we’d beaten Liverpool.

I get it, Arteta did fuck those games up with his stubbornness but to me there’s no guarantee they wouldn’t have gone south anyway. And it is undeniable that when we’ve won all but ten games this season that to say it’s nothing to do with Man City that we aren’t going to win the title seems baffling at best.

Given that if not for Man City and their relentless winning machine we would be winning the title (this is the team that has done the double over us let us not forget). No I’m not saying it wasn’t possible for us to win the title and that we shouldn’t be disappointed for letting ourselves down, what I’m saying is the points dropped have only cost us because it’s City

[IBK]

Its easy to be captain hindsight and yesterday's excellent performance/result may well have been partly the result of less pressure on a team that has already blown its realistic chance at the title.

But given how Jorginho and Kiwor performed, it is so difficult not to wonder what could have been if the manager had trusted them and been brave enough to freshen the team up just a couple of games earlier.

Arteta's stubborn perseverence with players who are under-performing is a big blind spot that I really hope he looks at going forwards. It irks me that Vieira has been trusted more than the 2 above players previously - where the nervousness transmitted down the spine of our team with Partey and Holding has for me been the single biggest reason for our recent dropped points and sub par team performances.

Its not the first time, either. Certain players who have performed for us in the past like Eddie and ESR were only given a chance becuse Arteta was forced into it.

[LDG]

This Arteta bashing stuff from Arsenal fans is bollocks

[Letters]

We can wring our hands about West Ham or Southampton. There have been other slips during the season, but there have been a lot of good wins and rescued points or 3 points.
Ultimately it’s the head to heads with City that’s cost us. Even a draw in one of those games and we’d be 3 points ahead of them with them having a game in hand. Still in their hands with their GD, but we’d be in a very strong position. If we’d got 2 draws then we’d be champions. Not for nothing are they called 6 pointers. If City weren’t so relentless then we’d be champions, but even with them winning every game, we could still have won the title had we not lost to them twice.

[Niall_Quinn]

This Arteta bashing stuff from Arsenal fans is bollocks

Agreed. Short memories.

[IBK]

Agreed. Short memories.

Depends what you call bashing. Pointing out flaws (while commending the manager's extraordinary performance- albeit on other threads) is not this. You can be happy with Arteta's development of this team - which I am and have defended countless times - while being frustrated with things that have almost certainly let a title within our grasp slip. Doesn't make me less of a fan...

[Mac76]

Depends what you call bashing. Pointing out flaws (while commending the manager's extraordinary performance- albeit on other threads) is not this. You can be happy with Arteta's development of this team - which I am and have defended countless times - while being frustrated with things that have almost certainly let a title within our grasp slip. Doesn't make me less of a fan...

This

The alternative is pledging blind allegiance, I'll no more do that with Arteta than I would with King Bigears

[Niall_Quinn]

Depends what you call bashing. Pointing out flaws (while commending the manager's extraordinary performance- albeit on other threads) is not this. You can be happy with Arteta's development of this team - which I am and have defended countless times - while being frustrated with things that have almost certainly let a title within our grasp slip. Doesn't make me less of a fan...

I assumed the post I was responding to was related to the batch of YouTube knowitalls that have been offering their advice to Arteta on everything from team selection through his post match interview techniques. I dig into AFTV from time to time to see what the fans look like these days. They are all so serious about it, like I used to be. I'm happy not to be like that any more. It's kind of liberating. It'd also be a fun exercise to actually let some of these clowns manage the club for a bit. Can't afford the relegation though, I suppose.

[HCZ_Reborn]

AFTV? That very quickly became a pastiche of itself, it was the progenitor of what seems to exist in all football clubs how…a you tube channel for football fans. Our one became far more about the contributors themselves than the football. You have one contributor who has subsequently died who clearly was mentally unwell (and I don’t mean that in a pejorative way, clearly suffering from acute depression to the point where even the guy who runs the show actually addressed it) and one who has been imprisoned for trying to kidnap his ex girlfriend.

It had little value in terms of information, and was more a source of entertainment to other fans

I find myself quite taken with the Bournemouth fan channel, a club that feels like it has a big connection with its fan base.

As for fans with opinions, well this place wouldn’t survive without it.