By all accounts, the Gunners did not have a good summer transfer window. They did, however, put in an excellent performance on deadline day, that will improve their team immensely.
Firstly they signed another keeper to compete with the inconsistent Wojciech Szczesny. Then the big deal came… Arsene Wenger managed to sign one of the world’s best midfielders, Mesut Ozil.
Arsenal had been rather quiet up until that point, but the Ozil deal changed the entire complexion of club’s summer. The Gunners went from no-hopers to title-contenders.
At least that’s the case if you’re an optimistic Arsenal fan. Not everybody believes the Gunners are in the running this year.
Check out Manchester City forward Sergio Aguero’s recent comments on the Premier League title race:
“It will be a really competitive Premier League but we have a good squad to win… United will be our biggest rivals, even if they have changed coach. And then Chelsea with the return of Mourinho. Tottenham have built a great squad and then there is always Liverpool.” (Source: The Mirror)
Arsenal are notable by their absence. Of course, there’s a chance that Aguero may simply have forgotten to list the Gunners, but the fact that he mentions both Tottenham and Liverpool suggests otherwise. Those two clubs haven’t been in the running for a long-while now. Not to list Arsenal seems like a deliberate shun.
Intentional or not, it’s worth asking the question: can Arsenal compete for the Premier League title this season?
The Gunners haven’t won any silverware for the best part of a decade. There don’t seem to be any natural winners within this squad. Indeed, Arsenal are often accused of having a soft-centre and are always capable of crumbling when the going gets tough.
Yet the Arsenal team we’ve seen already this season seems to be made of sterner stuff. The way they’ve recovered from the 3-1 defeat at the hands of Aston Villa is particularly impressive.
Aaron Ramsey and Jack Wilshere are both competitive midfielders. New signing Mathieu Flamini will add more steel to the squad.
Then, of course, there’s Mesut Ozil. He’s the man who’s capable of elevating the Gunners up the table. His creative excellence, ability on the ball and vision could lead the Gunners to silverware.
The one thing that may hold Arsenal back is a lack of firepower upfront. Perhaps that’s why Aguero is unwilling to add the club to the list of contenders?
Beyond Olivier Giroud, Arsenal have very few players they can turn to. Luckily, Giroud (or Nicklas Bendtner, Yaya Sanogo, etc) will have excellent service from the midfield and should get plenty of chances to score.
So who’s to say Arsenal can’t surprise everybody this season? This is the strongest the squad has been for a long time. Let’s see if they can go the length!
What’s your take? Is Sergio Aguero right?
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Hell no
Hell no too,
City,United,and Chelsea will all crush Arsenal they have what arsenal have and more teams. Ozil is good but Silva is just as good if not better.
Arsenal still have a paper thin squad and can be strangled by a strong team
Bob you shit head! Silva isn’t better then ozil, most assist in the last 5years!!!!! Cazorla was better then silva!. If all our players come back then what? Then we got 3 goalkeepers. 8 defenders, 12 midfielders and 5 strikers, so stop your crap! Man city is shit. we will destroy you beware
Silva is just as good if not better? Hahaha .. guess you don’t read too much.
City looked toothless during the pre season game against Arsenal, and they lost 3-1
Toothless again against Stoke. Manshitty? lol.
Arsenal are top of the table now.
I am an Arsenal fan, but I am afraid Aguero is right. We are not title contenders. and Bob is also right. Our squad is really thin. I do expect us to create a few surprises here and there, but when it comes to the title, Chelsea and United are the real deal (not even City is in that league). Arsenal needs a star striker like RVP, a defensive mildfielder (we have so many creative players, but no typical enforcers. Having Flamini is not enough) and a solid centerback. That is way too much weakness when you are chasing a title.