We’re midway through February and Arsenal are still in with a chance of winning not one, not two but three major trophies this season. Okay, so the Champions League is the most difficult of the three but a Premier League-FA Cup double certainly isn’t beyond the realms of possibility. After ten barren years without a trophy, Arsenal have won the FA Cup in each of the last two seasons but fans want more this season – and rightly so.
On Saturday, Arsenal were held to a goalless draw by Steve Bruce’s Hull City in their fifth round FA Cup clash. The visitors defended resolutely throughout the afternoon, with goalkeeper Eldin Jakupovic making a number of superb stops to keep the scores level. On another day, the Gunners could have romped to victory and Arsene Wenger will be quietly confident of booking their place in the next round after a replay at the KC Stadium.
In the quarter-finals, the Gunners will face a potentially tricky clash with Watford if they beat Hull in their replay. Fortunately, Arsenal have been handed yet another home fixture so that could be handy – especially if the Gunners advance past Barcelona in the Champions League. It’s all ifs and buts at the moment, however Arsenal have a genuine chance of reaching the semi-finals at Wembley at the very least. From there, who knows…
However, they must now immediately turn their attention to the Premier League. Arsenal will face Manchester United, Swansea and Tottenham Hotspur in the space of a week and Wenger’s men will need to use all of their experience to get through this difficult run of games. The Gunners simply cannot afford to be playing catch up with less than ten fixtures to go and supporters know just how important these next three games are.
Because if Arsenal are going to win the Premier League title, these are the matches they must win – or at the very least, draw. United are struggling and the Gunners couldn’t have picked a better time to face the 13-time Premier League champions whilst Swansea’s honeymoon period under new boss Francesco Guidolin is all but over. The most important game, however, is the north London derby – and don’t we know it.
Many Arsenal fans will be backing the Gunners in various online betting markets ahead of the big match but it won’t be easy. Tottenham are flying high under Mauricio Pochettino and stand a genuine chance of winning the title this season. At the time of writing, Arsenal are 6/4 with Betway to win the crown and it’s certainly an interesting betting offer, especially if you fancy the Gunners to go on and beat United, Swansea and Spurs.
Realistically, Wenger’s side won’t win the Champions League this season. Barcelona, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich are just too strong and the Gunners should prioritise the two domestic competitions. The Premier League title would suffice but a league-cup double would be the cherry on the cake, especially if Arsenal beat Spurs to both trophies!