Mikel Arteta knows Arsenal can't start the Premier League like they did last season - but history is against them.
That is because the last time they visited Crystal Palace, who they face in their 2022-23 curtain-raiser on Friday night, they were thumped 3-0. The humiliating defeat will still eat away at Arteta and the manager will be well aware of the comparisons made when they travel to south London.
The Gunners endured a dreadful start to the league campaign last term. Three defeats on the bounce, including a 5-0 mauling by Manchester City, piled the pressure on Arteta and despite eventually finding some momentum, they ultimately missed out on a top-four spot.
The thrashing by Palace in April was a key element to their collapse in the second half of last season. Heading into that clash, they had won six out of seven games to gain the momentum in the top four race but they were then brought back down to earth at Selhurst Park - and Arteta didn't hide away from the reality.
Speaking after the game, he said: "It is time to accept the criticism, put your hand up and apologise because this performance was not good enough for this club, but then react. From the beginning we were not at the races. When you come here you have to compete, you have to win duels and second balls and be aggressive and we were none of those."
Fast forward four months and Arteta will need his side at the races on Friday night if they are to finally climb back into the top four. The pressure is on Arteta and his players, with transfer guru Edu overseeing a hefty summer spending spree that has seen Gabriel Jesus, Oleksandr Zinchenko and Fabio Vieira all arrive in north London.
Have you say! Will Arsenal finish in the top four this season? Let us know here.
Arteta's criticism of his players following that embarrassing performance under the lights in south London will increase the pressure on his side. There are two reasons for that; they can't have a repeat like that, but they also can't start the season with a defeat.
The Spaniard knows how important it is to to start with some momentum. Palace's home is regarded as one of the toughest Premier League grounds to visit outside the top six; so get a victory and their rivals will stand up and take notice.
He has made some notable changes to the starting XI that featured against Palace last season, with Nuno Tavares and Alexandre Lacazette leaving this summer. Elsewhere, it remains to be seen whether Cedric Soares and Emile Smith Rowe will start on Friday night.
Arteta can't be faulted for his ambition and, speaking on Thursday, the Gunners boss was in confident mood. He insisted he has been happy with his business this summer, while also claiming his team have learned lessons from their 2-0 opening day defeat at Brentford last season.
He said: "It is different. Everything that happened before Brentford was pretty strange and unique. We are really excited, looking forward to the new season and will try to start in the best way."
Time will tell if that is this case.
