Last season Arsenal shocked the footballing world by running Manchester City close for the Premier League title. If they are to go one better this time, they've found out exactly how they are going to do it.
The Gunners' fixtures for the 2023/24 Premier League season were released on Thursday morning and, as ever, they make fascinating reading. With potential squad additions like Kai Havertz and Declan Rice, this campaign is shaping up to be a crucial one for Mikel Arteta's men.
Here football.london takes a look at some of their most important fixtures as they seek to claim a first Premier League title in two decades.
Kind but crucial start
It's no secret that Arsenal benefitted from a kind start to the fixture list last season. In their opening eight games they faced just two of the prior campaign's top 10 and were able to build up momentum for their unexpected title charge as a result.
While the fixture gods haven't been that kind this time around, they're not far off. Of the opening seven games that Arsenal have, just three are against last season's top half and all three of those are at home. When you consider Fulham finished 10th, last season that starts to look even kinder. Of course the games against Manchester United and Tottenham are never easy, but having them at the Emirates is certainly a boost as the Gunners look to repeat their strong start from last year.
Champions League challenge
A new thing that Arsenal have to contend with this season is Champions League football. In the past Mikel Arteta has been able to make massive alterations to his starting XI in Europa League games, but in Europe's top tier competition that's simply not an option.
Their first post-Champions League clash is followed by the visit of Tottenham to the Emirates Stadium which could be tricky. It doesn't get any easier after that, with their first head-to-head against Manchester City coming at home after matchday 2. Matchday 3 is followed by the slightly easier task of Sheffield United at home, while it's another newly promoted team in Burnley at home after matchday 4. Wolves and Brighton at home are their final two post-Champions League group stage matches. Watching how Arteta copes with the need to manage his squad across those games will be fascinating.
READ MORE: Arsenal news and transfers LIVE: Fixtures released, Havertz interest, Declan Rice bid, Caicedo move
Head-to-heads with Manchester City
If Arsenal are to win the Premier League this season, then it's safe to say Manchester City will be their biggest challengers again. Pep Guardiola is looking to build on a squad that has already won the treble this summer, and as the Gunners know from last campaign, near perfection is required to beat them.
As a result those six pointers against City are likely to be decisive yet again. The first one comes just prior to the second international break of the season on October 7th. That of course is subject to change, but Arsenal will hope to go into it with a bit of momentum after their kind start. Unlike the season just gone, the trip to the Etihad is quite a bit earlier on March 30th this year. That's just after the March international break, where Arsenal have historically struggled to get wins. Arteta will be hoping he can buck that trend this time around.
Rough run in
Of course though it all comes down to the run-in. In 2023/24 Arsenal folded under the pressure in relatively winnable games against the likes of Southampton and West Ham, and it doesn't seem like the task will be any easier this time around.
Within their final four games the Gunners travel to both Tottenham and Manchester United - their final two away matches of the campaign. It doesn't get too much tougher than that. Of course, Arsenal have won the Premier League title at both grounds this century, and they'll be hoping history can repeat itself next May.
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