The brand new Premier League season is upon us, with yet another campaign of twist and turns ahead for all involved. For the second consecutive year, Arsenal will kick things off as the first game on Friday night and though last time it was a short trip to Brentford on the cards, this time round it's another London club in Crystal Palace.
Mikel Arteta will be hoping for a massive improvement on last year's start, where they lost their first three fixtures of the season and languished bottom of the Premier League. The campaign as a whole was largely positive, with a push for the top four always on the agenda.
However, they just narrowly missed out on a return to the Champions League, representing a huge blow to the Spaniard and his efforts. Despite that, plenty are still tipping the Gunners to make another challenge for a top four finish this campaign following a number of signings.
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"It’s great that people are excited," Arteta said in his pre-match press conference. "But I think there’s a big excitement across the Premier League because a lot of clubs have done a lot of business and the competition is really big. We’re focusing on what we can do, what we want to do and how we can be high in that table."
Five players have made the switch to the Emirates Stadium so far, with over £100million spent on new arrivals for the tough season ahead. The addition of quality in depth will make Arteta hopeful his side can go one step further in the Premier League, while dealing with the weight of cup competitions.
A good start against Palace could determine how everything pans out, though, with the Gunners only taking one point from the six available against their neighbours last season. However, with the transfer window yet to close, teams are yet to get their business concluded as quickly as Arsenal, with their opponents being one.
Eagles boss - and former Arsenal captain - Patrick Vieira told the media his squad are still short of players ahead of the clash: "As a manager you’re always wanting more. So far I’ve been really happy with the players we’ve managed to bring in. Obviously, we are short on numbers but we still have a few weeks until the end of the market."
With the introduction of the five substitution rule this campaign, the Gunners' quick business could see them make the start they desire over their early season foes.
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