by Tony Attwood
As I am sure you will know, Arsenal have lost three games this season.
The first defeat came in match three, away to Liverpool 1-0 after successive wins against ManU and Leeds. There were media suggestions that the erratic form of last season was continuing.
But Arsenal then went 18 games unbeaten in all competitions before losing 2-3 at home to Manchester United, the second defeat of the season. Since that defeat, Arsenal have played four games and won all four, despite the media suggesting after the ManU game that Arsenal would now fall apart. In those four games, Arsenal have scored 11 and conceded two.
So the question is, can Arsenal continue with another long undefeated run – something along the lines of the 18 consecutive games between the defeat to Liverpool and the defeat to Man U.
And perhaps we might also mention the fact that in this long run of matches in all competitions, there have only been five draws in all competitions, although in fact all five have come in the Premier League, against ManC, Sunderland, Chelsea, Liverpool and Forest.
In the media, much has been made of the fact that the last time Arsenal won the league was in 2004. What they mention less often is that this was the only title since the very first season of the League in which a club remained unbeaten.
If we look at the current league table, we can see that outside of Arsenal’s three defeats in league matches, each Manchester club has had five defeats in the league, with around 13 games to go.
| Team | P | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arsenal | 25 | 17 | 5 | 3 | 49 | 17 | 32 | 56 |
| 2 | Manchester City | 24 | 14 | 5 | 5 | 49 | 23 | 26 | 47 |
| 4 | Manchester United | 25 | 12 | 8 | 5 | 46 | 36 | 10 | 44 |
| 3 | Aston Villa | 25 | 14 | 5 | 6 | 36 | 27 | 9 | 47 |
| 5 | Chelsea | 25 | 12 | 7 | 6 | 45 | 28 | 17 | 43 |
Now obviously we are all hoping that Arsenal keep up the pressure and do indeed win the title, and if that does happen, then this will be a very interesting parallel to events at the turn of this century…..
- 1998/1999: Manchester United 1st, Arsenal 2nd
- 1998/2000: Manchester United 1st, Arsenal 2nd
- 2001/2002: Manchester United 1st, Arsenal 2nd
- 2002/2003: Arsenal 1st, Liverpool 2nd. (Manchester United came third.)
Now in the subsequent years, Manchester United won the league in 2003 and Arsenal again in 2004 (the Unbeaten Season). And what I think that Arteta and co are now working on is not just Arsenal winning the league this season, but continuing the run.
Many teams in the top division have won the league in consecutive seasons, and after all that is not surprising, given that the team that has won the league is likely to stay together for the subsequent season.
And as we know, thanks to their uncontrolled spedning Manchester City won the league four times running. If Arsenal could do that with controlled spedning it most certainly would be the greatest achievement in the history of the league.
But if we look back to untainted performances, Manchester United won the league three times running from 1998/9 onwards and then again from 2006/7. Prior to that it was Liverpool’s 1981/2 season and the subsequent two that caught the attention, and that was the first since Arsenal’s 1930s run of three titless in succession.
My view (and of course I am biased) is that in time the run of four successive wins by Manchester City starting in 2020/21 will be noted with an * pointing out that they were subsequently found guilty of actions which were not in accordance with the rules of the league.
That refers of course, to the 115 court cases against the club, although we still don’t know if ManC will ever allow the case to be concluded. As we know, the club has announced that if any penalty is awarded against the club (points or fines) the club will take constant legal action against the League until the League runs out of money.
The solution to all this, as published here, is that the remaining 19 teams simply resign from the league and set up a new league from which clubs with outstanding legal cases against them are banned.
In the meanwhile I am hoping that Arsenal not only win the league this season, but for at least two more, to match the sensational achievement of Arsenal in the 1930s. I would add I would also be delighted to see the current management continue at the club for each of those three consecutive years – in contrast to Arsenal in the 1930s where those three successive titles were won under three different managers.
The story of Arsenal’s record-breaking 100 successive seasons in the top division is currently being told on the website of the AISA Arsenal History Society. There is an index to the whole series here. For more information about AISA (The Arsenal Independent Supporters Association) please follow that link to their website.
