The elimination of Arsenal from the Europa League was a genuine blow. Forget talk of fewer games for a moment and look back on what is a horrific record for a club of the Gunners’ size in Europe which could have been part-rectified with victory in the competition and stunting a potential Manchester United trophy lift too.
However, putting aside the sorrow of the defeat last week, the dominant performance and win over Crystal Palace before the international break set up a reality for Arsenal’s Premier League title chances. The simplicity of the task at hand falls in the favour of Mikel Arteta who now has just 10 games to focus on.
Manchester City have an additional league fixture still to play with at least three more in the FA Cup semi-final vs Brighton and the two-legged Champions League quarter-final with Bayern Munich. Progression in both will result in a further three with a potential Champions League final adding another on top.
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Pep Guardiola will need to manage his squad to balance competitiveness with freshness. A task that’s easiest for Man City compared to any other side with the richness of talent in the group.
For Arsenal, a title challenge with cup ambitions proved too much for this thinner, younger group of stars. City have already been dealt a reminder of the challenge with Erling Haaland pulling out of international duty with a groin injury, although the extent of the issue is not yet known.
With 10 games Mikel Arteta need not concern himself too much with the deliberation of rotation. Realise what the strongest team available is and play it: it’s that simple.
Yes, there are some decisions to be made on when to reintroduce Gabriel Jesus into the starting XI; made harder by the strong form of the January acquisition (and what a buy he has been by the way) of Leandro Trossard.
However, in all honesty the Belgian will most likely take the shape of the Diogo Jota-style role that Liverpool used to supplement Sadio Mane, Roberto Firmino and Mohamed Salah so effectively. Jesus will likely reform the early season trident of success with Gabriel Martinelli and Bukayo Saka it’d be safe to assume.
William Saliba remains a doubt with a back issue suffered against Sporting CP meaning Rob Holding came in against Crystal Palace. Arsenal have just one-midweek fixture left this season, barring any potential postponements.
This game happens to be against Manchester City, but the Europa League exit means the home tie with Southampton remains positioned on the Friday evening before the trip to Manchester, instead of being pushed to Sunday to accommodate the Europa League quarter-finals. The smallest gap is that after the trip to the Etihad Stadium; the Gunners host Chelsea three days later.
Graham Potter's side have their own game on the Wednesday against Brentford, and therefore shouldn’t hold much, if any, advantage in terms of recovery time. This might be where the likes of Trossard could be used, but the many players showed against Sporting CP and Crystal Palace their ability to perform in two games in quick succession - something that will be necessary in the Champions League next season anyway.
In short, these 10 games allow Arsenal to play their best team in every single one, barring injury. A boost that can hopefully carry the Gunners toward a first title in 19 years.
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