WACKY RACES

Have the Arsenal stumbled upon a way in which being risk averse has been consigned to the dustbin? Possibly, but what allows a more offensive style is having some experience and stability where it counts and the return of Elneny typifies that as has Dhaka's Indian summer of behaving himself and generally doing what needs to be done.

The young players have needed this support structure to enable them to be proactive in the areas that can cause the most damage.

It’s shit or bust time in the race for that 4^th spot and this may be perfect opportunity for a bit of jeopardy. What you often get with young players, and don’t forget the Arsenal have the youngest squad in the league, is a lack of fear. By solidifying the midfield Arteta seems to be unleashing the talent as we are now in the serious business of points gathering.

 

The fixtures ahead not only represent an opportunity to secure a return to Europe’s premier competition, with the obvious advantages that brings, but for these players to end a season that started so badly, with a flourish.

I think it's not too presumptuous to say that in all probability the Arsenal will be back in Europe in one way or another during the 22/23 season but the Champions League would be a fine place to put the "process" to the test.

The race for the number 4 position is resembling an episode of Wacky Races and those teams vying for that coveted fourth place are proving to be as inconsistent as each other, however Manchester United are imploding, West Ham are running out of gas and have the carrot of a Europa League final dangling, Chelsea have enough to secure 3rd, although their future has large question marks attached to it. As for that team from Seven Sisters Road, one thing you can count on with them is their innate ability to be, well, to be, Spursy. The clash on 12th May would, on the face of it, appear to be a fourth place play off, but a lot can happen between now and then.

The mistakes of the January transfer window, the poor performances that followed a good run of form, all those things have introduced a note of negativity but it's inarguable that the two victories over Chelsea and Manchester United have energised the team and the fans.

A season that started in catastrophic fashion may end on a note of optimism and if it does let's hope that a summer of decent recruitment and rest for our youngsters can give us a good season to look forward to.