- Porto v Arsenal: could Arsenal possibly continue the goalscoring form of the last 3 games?
- Arsenal in the Champions League. How are our rivals doing at the moment?
According to those in the media who bother with such things, tomorrow’s match is not the key thing on Arsenal supporters’ minds. Rather it is Arsenal fans’ fury at 10 per cent season ticket hike as prices exceed £2,000.
But I am not sure that is so. It is an issue and the Arsenal Independent Supporters Association is indeed discussing it, but “fury”? No, not generally. We want Arsenal to buy players and that money comes from a variety of sources, from sponsors, TV channels and advertisers, to the money we pay to watch the games in the stadium.
But the furor that the media is now boiling up, and which will last until they have another tale (or is that tail) to follow (or wag), is not how many people see the issue. Because the waiting list for season tickets is gigantic. Register for a season ticket now and you might get an email in ten years time.
At the same time the demand that Arsenal do better and better is unending. And yet not five minutes go by without one of the media sites now screaming about Arsenal’s ludicrous hike in prices, while demanding in the next article that Arsenal buy another six players in the summer.
It was said recently in an article from the Guardian’s “Football Daily” email that “The unspoken problem with the Championship is there are simply too many clubs expecting success. At least 20 begin the season with aims of reaching the playoffs or better and most end up disappointed.”
And those clubs too are spending more and more, especially those that find themselves an extraordinarily rich owner who is willing to plough money into the club in order to be able to …. sell it on later on, on the basis that the going rate for football clubs is rising all the time.
But let’s move on to the issue of the last six games, first in Portugal.
| Team | P | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sporting Lisbon | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 28 | 3 | +25 | 18 |
| 2 | Benfica | 6 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 21 | 5 | +16 | 16 |
| 3 | FC Porto | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 14 | 4 | +10 | 13 |
And now in the Premier League
| Team | P | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Manchester City | 6 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 14 | 5 | +9 | 16 |
| 2 | Arsenal | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 22 | 4 | +18 | 15 |
| 3 | Liverpool | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 20 | 8 | +12 | 15 |
And just so you don’t have to jump your eyes up and down, directly comparing the two clubs in the match at Porto’s ground tomorrow…
| Team | P | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | FC Porto | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 14 | 4 | +10 | 13 |
| 2 | Arsenal | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 22 | 4 | +18 | 15 |
So both teams are doing well in their respective leagues, with Arsenal edging the issue by having five wins to Portos four wins and a draw. Both teams have conceded four goals but Arsenal have outshone Porto in the goal scoring rankings by 57%.
In fact, in the last six games Arsenal have outshone everyone in terms of goals scored (22 as we can see above), goals conceded (just four), and inevitably in terms of goal difference (+18). The next best goal difference is +12 for Liverpool and then +9 Manchester City. Tottenham, in case you are interested (but who is these days) are on +3, scoring 13 and conceding 10.
Thus both teams are in form in their respective leagues which could make for an attacking game. Porto know that they will have to knock in a few goals in order to have a chance back at the Arsenal stadium, and Arsenal know that they have the best defence in the hardest league in Europe.
If however, we do our normal thing of looking at the last six games showing just home games for the home team and… well you know… we’d get this…
| Team | P | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | FC Porto home | 6 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 13 | 1 | +12 | 16 |
| 4 | Arsenal away | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 15 | 5 | +10 | 10 |
So yes, there is a measure in which Porto at home could think of beating Arsenal away. But how has that happened? Well it was that downturn at the end of last year that causes this.
| Date | Match | Result | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 09 Dec 2023 | Aston Villa v Arsenal | L | 1-0 |
| 23 Dec 2023 | Liverpool v Arsenal | D | 1-1 |
| 31 Dec 2023 | Fulham v Arsenal | L | 2-1 |
| 30 Jan 2024 | Nottingham Forest v Arsenal | W | 1-2 |
| 11 Feb 2024 | West Ham United v Arsenal | W | 0-6 |
| 17 Feb 2024 | Burnley v Arsenal | W | 0-5 |
But would today’s Arsenal in its wonderful flying form beat Fulham and Villa away? I’m pretty sure they would. Thus no doubts here about a win tomorrow.
