Will Arsenal challenge for the title this season?

Will Arsenal challenge for the title this season?

By Jonny Bray

There is a buzz at the Emirates Stadium.

After two games, Arsenal and Manchester City are the only sides in the league who can boast a 100% record.

Mikel Arteta's exciting Brazillian contingent have given birth to fresh optimism amongst Gunners fans with some suggesting that, after years of ridicule, Arsenal are back.

Gabriel Jesus has hit the ground running, Gabriel Martinelli looks like he is becoming the elite winger he has promised to be for several seasons, and the midfield finally appears to be clicking. 

At the back, the Gunners look solid too.

Oleksandr Zinchenko and Ben White have excelled at full-back while William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhães have settled as a top-quality partnership in the heart of the Arsenal defence.

But are Gunners fans getting ahead of themselves?

Is this the season that Arsenal start to challenge for the league again, or will the Gunners waste away and spend another year fighting for Champions League football?

Arsenal are title contenders

Crystal Palace and Leicester City are two strong sides that will challenge for a spot in the top ten this season.

Leicester may have had their problems over the summer, but they have real quality in almost every area of the pitch.

A 4-2 win at home is an incredibly impressive result that proves Arteta has this side moving in the right direction.

The 2-0 win against Crystal Palace may not have been as convincing as the victory against the Foxes, but for long periods of the game Arsenal's attack was majestic.

And most impressively of all, Arteta's side did not crack under pressure.

The Arsenal of old would have conceded a goal and possibly lost that game, with Crystal Palace on the front foot for at least half of the contest.

However, this side were able to hang on to the lead before killing the game late in the match.

The Gunners also finally appear to have assembled a team that does not have a glaring weakness in the starting XI.

In previous years Arsenal have come into the new season with gaps in the defence, a weak goalkeeper or a lack of attacking threat.

But this year, Arsenal have quality in defence, midfield, attack and in goal.

And excitingly, there are still players to come in.

Fábio Vieira is yet to make his Arsenal debut, Takehiro Tomiyasu will return from injury soon, and the transfer window has not even closed yet.

So yes, Arsenal fans have a lot of reasons to be excited at the moment.

Arsenal are not title contenders

There are still some question marks surrounding certain aspects of Arteta's side, particularly in midfield.

Granit Xhaka has started the season well, but he is an inconsistent player who can still lose his head in the big moments.

Thomas Partey has had injury issues over the years and is yet to play a full season at The Emirates since joining from Atlético Madrid.

The Gunners have immense depth in attacking midfield, with Vieira and Martin Ødegaard both bringing plenty to the table.

But the Gunners definitely don't have the depth of a Manchester City or a Liverpool.

An injury crisis at the Emirates, in any position, would most likely see the Gunners fall off the pace.

Conclusion

Arteta does not have the tactical nous of a Jürgen Klopp or a Pep Guardiola and this Arsenal team doesn't have the quality of the top two sides either.

So, the Gunners are dark horses, but the club are clearly moving in the right direction.

Third place isn't completely out of the question, and if everything clicks in North London then the Gunners could even challenge for the title late into the season.

Photo Credit: Getty Images

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