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Race for the Top 4 - 2018/19

Where will we finish in the league ?


  • Total voters
    423
  • Poll closed .

coys200

Well-Known Member
May 22, 2017
8,436
17,403
Maitland- Niles out for 8 weeks. When you consider Emery record in Europa, I reckon he will take it pretty seriously. Their squad is gonna be seriously stretched. For me they just aren’t involved in top 4 argument at all.
 

hellava_tough

Well-Known Member
Apr 21, 2005
9,429
12,382
Maitland- Niles out for 8 weeks. When you consider Emery record in Europa, I reckon he will take it pretty seriously. Their squad is gonna be seriously stretched. For me they just aren’t involved in top 4 argument at all.

Agreed

To be honest, I think this is the season the so-called 'Top 6' become the 'Top 5', with Arsenal finishing well off the pace.

Last season they finished 7pts behind a ropey Chelsea side that had all but downed tools (including their manager :LOL:).

So if Arsenal have a poor league finish two seasons in a row, with no easy fixes in sight, the media and fans are going to saying 'Top 5' instead of 'Top 6'.
 

coys200

Well-Known Member
May 22, 2017
8,436
17,403
Somebody will come out the pack and challenge Arsenal for 6th most likely Leicester for me maybe Everton. To see them fumbling in 8th would be glorious. If they lose to Chelsea this weekend which I fully expect. The West Ham game will suddenly be huge. Imagine having 0pts after 3 games ?
 

ajspurs

Well-Known Member
Jul 7, 2007
22,987
31,167
I don't want to speak too soon, before knowing Arsenal's real capabilities but their team really can look a little weak. I had an Arsenal fan the other telling me I should be concerned with Spurs this season with him being very optimistic regarding Arsenal and while I took his points on board, I did say that I think it's Arsenal that should be concerned really. I said that yes we didn't sign anyone, but we can at least still rely on Dele, Kane, Eriksen and Son to all step up for us at various stages throughout the season and you can't really say that about anyone in the Arsenal team.

With a lot of the other teams outside of the top 6 improving well, I can see them giving Arsenal the most trouble because they have no real backbone.
 

DCSPUR

Well-Known Member
Apr 15, 2005
3,918
5,415
goon squad could actually go one of two ways - on paper they have a lot of goals in that team....and surely Emery can get them defending better than Wenger?
 

Lighty64

I believe
Aug 24, 2010
10,400
12,476
Agreed

To be honest, I think this is the season the so-called 'Top 6' become the 'Top 5', with Arsenal finishing well off the pace.

Last season they finished 7pts behind a ropey Chelsea side that had all but downed tools (including their manager :LOL:).

So if Arsenal have a poor league finish two seasons in a row, with no easy fixes in sight, the media and fans are going to saying 'Top 5' instead of 'Top 6'.

Ok I hate Arsenal and don’t think they will finish top 4, but I do expect them to do better this season. They only won 1 of their last 9-10 away matches last season.

The injured player is he that big a miss? He has only just broke into the side the last season, and wouldn’t say he has done enough to call it pivotal. Injuries count more when it’s either the main man, or there are 4 or 5 knocks to regulars.

I believe we will finish above them and wouldn’t be shocked if we actually just beat last seasons points, but I expect Arse to gain 9pts plus making it closer
 

slartibartfast

Grunge baby forever
Oct 21, 2012
18,320
33,955
I think you could improve almost every team in the premier leagues defence just by getting the silly bastards to clear their lines when boxed in under pressure instead of falling into the trap of trying to play out from the back when theres no space to do so.
First weekend and we've already seen Man City, Arsenal and Everton just to name a few guilty of causing their own problems.
I find it pathetic frankly.
 

topper

Well-Known Member
Jan 27, 2008
3,806
16,254
I think you could improve almost every team in the premier leagues defence just by getting the silly bastards to clear their lines when boxed in under pressure instead of falling into the trap of trying to play out from the back when theres no space to do so.
First weekend and we've already seen Man City, Arsenal and Everton just to name a few guilty of causing their own problems.
I find it pathetic frankly.
You may not like it but it's one of the reasons why City romped the league last season!
 

coys200

Well-Known Member
May 22, 2017
8,436
17,403
Mustafi/ sokratis is really poor I mean really poor. At a guess I’d say maybe 4 or5 teams in the entire league would swap their CB pairing for them. And once they’ve been exposed which I believe they will be in first 10 games where will Emery turn holding or mavropanos.
 

Shadydan

Well-Known Member
Jul 7, 2012
38,247
104,143
I think you could improve almost every team in the premier leagues defence just by getting the silly bastards to clear their lines when boxed in under pressure instead of falling into the trap of trying to play out from the back when theres no space to do so.
First weekend and we've already seen Man City, Arsenal and Everton just to name a few guilty of causing their own problems.
I find it pathetic frankly.

Alright calm down Sam
 

spursfan77

Well-Known Member
Aug 13, 2005
46,680
104,956
The fact Mustafi is still first choice centre back tells me things won’t change in their defence.
 

slartibartfast

Grunge baby forever
Oct 21, 2012
18,320
33,955
You may not like it but it's one of the reasons why City romped the league last season!
And how often is the city defence boxed in?
They spend most of every game in the oppositions half.
They have the best of the best and are capable of playing that way.
Most teams just dont have the players capable of getting out of trouble like that.
 

Hans Gruber

Active Member
Aug 10, 2017
183
434
Maitland- Niles out for 8 weeks. When you consider Emery record in Europa, I reckon he will take it pretty seriously. Their squad is gonna be seriously stretched. For me they just aren’t involved in top 4 argument at all.

Way too early to be writing off Arsenal I feel. They still have a potentially very lethal front line, and if Emery can find a way of getting them all on the team sheet and playing well together then they could definitely be a threat, maybe not for the title but certainly for the top 4. On balance our squad is better than theirs but not leagues better, let's not get carried away. And remember we still have another new stadium to deal with.
 

Hans Gruber

Active Member
Aug 10, 2017
183
434
Mustafi/ sokratis is really poor I mean really poor. At a guess I’d say maybe 4 or5 teams in the entire league would swap their CB pairing for them. And once they’ve been exposed which I believe they will be in first 10 games where will Emery turn holding or mavropanos.

Mustafi is poor, agreed. Jury is out on how Sokratis fares in the Prem. But then, what really matters here is what style Arsenal go with under Emery. If its a high line, or if the CBs are left exposed without any cover, then yes they'll probably get torn a new one. If however they defend in a low block, with proper protection from Torreira or whomever, and attack on the counter (which their attack is perfectly set up for) I recon they could do alright*. Depends how Emery gets them playing. Remember, Leicester won the league with fucking Huth and Morgan.

* I should note that based on the City game it seems like he's setting them up for an expansive passing style, which bodes well for us as I don't think they have the players for it. We'll see.
 

coys200

Well-Known Member
May 22, 2017
8,436
17,403
Crazy to think anything but an Arsenal win next weekend could see them 8 or 9 pts adrift of the top 4 after 3 games.
 

Snarfalicious

Well-Known Member
Jul 15, 2012
15,709
71,935
It was always going to be tough sledding for Arsenal in the early going. Emery has to change not only their style of play but their mentality and we saw firsthand how that's a process. They'll likely be hoping to stay relevant in that 5th/6th discussion. Not sure Top 4 is a reality; but they do obviously have some incredibly talented players.

I'm not sure what to make of Chelsea. They showed today they still have the mental toughness to stay in it, but that defense looked suspect and I think a lot of it has to do with this new role of Kante. Sarri is trying to put him in more advanced positions and while I believe he's got that ability, it seems like it's at the sake of their defensive structure. We'll see how that all shakes out as the season goes on. Maybe it's a temporary measure until Kovacic is up to speed and ready to start matches.
 

Dov67

Well-Known Member
Jul 1, 2005
3,318
10,212
although watching the goons suffer is highly amusing, lets not get too carried away. First new manager after 20+ years, and 2 hard fixtures, so while i'd be very surprised if they seriously challenged for top 4 let alone made it to the top4, lets not celebrate too wildly too soon......just enjoy the moment :)
 

aliyid

Well-Known Member
Dec 28, 2004
6,944
19,929
Crazy to think anything but an Arsenal win next weekend could see them 8 or 9 pts adrift of the top 4 after 3 games.
Banter aside they have played City (H) and Chelsea (A) which are two of the toughest fixtures in the whole season.

Won’t stop me ripping a few arsenal fans thou :LOL:
 
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