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Title drama isn’t guaranteed every season. See Manchester City 2017/18 and Liverpool 2019/20 for a procession of one.
Nevertheless, there are usually a few honeymoon months for broadcasters and fans to dream of a proper footrace before the strongest on the savannah hunt down the antelopes. Super Sunday has to have meaning, right?
Jose Mourinho claimed that Chelsea were “champions of the autumn” when his side defeated Liverpool to sit top of the tree just before the November international break in 2014. The Blues had only dropped four points in 11 matches. The Portuguese said: “I think we have a very good chance to win the title, but I think we, Arsenal, Manchester City, Manchester United and Southampton are all still in the race.” Southampton. Hmmm.
‘Arsenal 2.0 are bulletproof’
Jose was bluffing, bigging up rivals who weren’t in the same ballpark. His side cantered over the line.
Man City and Arsenal were the closest challengers in that campaign, losing seven matches to Chelsea’s three. Manchester United were in a post-Ferguson funk, and Brendan Rodgers was experiencing the last rites as Anfield manager.
The 2025/26 class has a similar issue in the quality of challengers. Enzo Maresca’s New Model Army blasted out of the blocks with seven straight wins but have been hobbled by Pep’s familiar foes in Brighton and Aston Villa. It may be that the looming prospect of losing points through other means is beginning to sink deeper into their psyche.
Those 114 charges aren’t so much the elephant in the room as the rat in the kitchen. Arsenal are dining for one right now. They are master chefs while the rest are still trying to find the ingredients to lay an oven glove at the top table.
Liverpool’s loss to the champions last Sunday appeared to deflate the Anfield air and any sense that the Reds might be pretenders to the throne. Truth be told, no one had Andoni Iraola’s expensively imbalanced squad as a serious contender after the problematic 2025/26 season. They didn’t have a shot on target and fell nine points behind the leaders. Just one look at Jamie Carragher’s face told the story.
Chelsea, meanwhile, took the lead at the Emirates, but haven’t really clicked into anything resembling a stride – at least not against title-contender opposition.
The games that Arsenal were drawing in 2024/25 – and to a lesser extent last season – are now being won. There is a seismic gap between the sheer efficiency of the Gunners and the rest of the pack. That efficiency now has extra security and titanium screws in all areas barring the forward line. The midfield monster that is Bruno Guimaraes roars whenever a tackle is made. Ezri Konsa has slotted in as if he knew William Saliba’s every move. Missing Bukayo Saka? It’s not a big deal anymore.
Arsenal know who they are and are expanding their limited attacking horizons without losing that deadlock bolt at the back. The lack of a striker isn’t a problem when Gabriel and Konsa can win a game at both ends. The North London team have been victorious in 14 out of their last 15 Premier League matches .
While Xabi Alonso and Iraola are trying to restore order, Mikel Arteta’s squad are in absolute lockstep.
During that hard-fought victory over Sunderland in September, a game that Arsenal would surely have drawn in previous incarnations, Carragher mooted that Arteta was trying to become the new Sir Alex of the Premier League. The Spaniard hasn’t quite got the caustic asides, dry wit or trophy haul of the legendary Scot, but the war machine is heavily stocked. Nothing escapes Arteta’s mind map if it means marginal gains. He is controlling the Wild West. “I have a massive storage of images.” Quite.
The Premier League will celebrate its 35th champion next year and, to be brutally honest, it is searching for its reinvention as an entertainment package. The coalface clashes between highly decorated clubs have felt lukewarm for a while now, like gentle sparring from former greats on a senior tour.
Squeaky bum time in May seems fanciful. Arteta has learned that the W column is all that counts. When Hull City turn up at the Emirates without a win in seven, the Gunners will look to hit the 27-point mark, one behind Jose’s highly drilled warriors 12 years ago. “I know that the negative moment will arrive, the defeat will arrive, and we are prepared for that,” said Mourinho.
It could be a long winter for the chasing pack when that late November to March cycle restarts after the Nations League. Arsenal 2.0 are bulletproof.
