Ending five seasons of hurt: Why Arsenal must finish above Tottenham next year

Bukayo Saka

Ending five seasons of hurt: Why Arsenal must finish above Tottenham next year 


By Josh Graham

At one stage it looked like Arsenal would once again celebrate St Totteringham's day. 

The final day of the Premier League season saw the Gunners do what they could to try and leapfrog Spurs by beating Brighton 2-0 at the Emirates in front of 10,000 Gooners. 

And for 87 minutes it looked like Tottenham would fail to topple Leicester and thus finish behind their North London rivals for the first time in five years. 

But Gareth Bale scored twice in nine minutes at the death to thwart Brendan Rodgers' side and Mikel Arteta's men while also inadvertently saving Chelsea’s top four hopes after the Blues slipped to a 2-1 defeat at Aston Villa. 

Gunners must topple Spurs if they want to be serious contenders 


If Arteta and Co are serious about transforming Arsenal from mid-table mediocrity to genuine top four challengers once again, they must start by getting the edge over Spurs in the table. 

And if that Tottenham side loses England superstar Harry Kane, then there is simply no alternative. 

Spurs do not have a permanent manager in place and reports suggest if Kane leaves then several high-profile names could follow him out the exit door. 

Skipper Hugo Lloris and wideman Son Heung-min have both been mentioned in that bracket and the summer transfer window could trigger an almighty rebuilding job for whoever takes the reins at Spurs.

Conversely, Arsenal have unearthed young talent in Bukayo Saka and Emile Smith Rowe who can spur the club on for years to come. 

Even much maligned £72million record signing Nicolas Pepe found form at the back end of the season, finishing with two goals against both Brighton and Crystal Palace. 

It may yet turn out to be a blessing in disguise for the Gunners that they missed out on UEFA's new third-tier competition, the Europa Conference League. 

That 'honour' went to Spurs for finishing seventh but will burden them with far more fixtures than Arteta's side. 

If Arsenal are prioritising their league position next term, which they most definitely should be, then there is no better season to fly up the ladder without the distraction of any form of midweek European football for the first time in 25 years. 

However, it also leaves no room for error or excuses. 

This season’s Europa League threatened to mask a severely underwhelming domestic campaign for the men in red, until a humbling loss in the semi-final at the hands of old boss Unai Emery's Villarreal prevented an all-Premier League final against Manchester United. 

Next year, just the Premier League and domestic cup competitions will be barometers of success for the Gunners. 

Arsenal should not fixate solely on Spurs 


Arsenal may not have finished above Spurs in the league since 2016, but when it comes to trophies there is only one winner. 

Spurs missed out on ending their 13-year trophy drought by losing to Manchester City in the Carabao Cup final last month at Wembley. 

It could also cost them the Three Lions skipper with Kane so clear in his desire to land major team trophies after bagging multiple individual accolades for his goalscoring efforts. 

Since Spurs' 2008 League Cup triumph, Arsenal have won four FA Cups. 

Most recently, Arteta’s men trumped Frank Lampard's Chelsea to win the 2020 edition. 

As much as fans love to fixate on finishing above Spurs, even if Arsenal had managed to last weekend it still would not have made a trophy-less season a success. 

Finishing above Spurs next season is a necessity but must be viewed as a natural by-product of a successful year rather than the driving aim of a campaign.


Photo Credit: Getty Images

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