- Arsenal’s Strongest Starting XI Based on Current Form
- Why Arsenal joned the Football League rather than the Southern League
by Tony Attwood
Interestingly, it is not a qustion I have heard asked very much: “What happens after Arsenal win the league?”
It is an interesting question not least because of that fact: it is one that is not often asked. The media tend not to be very good at plotting the way things are run, largely because most journalists don’t have any experience in running a business.
Of course the reality is that if the journalist had the slightest bit of skill in running a football club then he or she would be… running a football club – or some other business (possibly one with less risk!) But no, that doesn’t happen. But we can still speculate on what next…
One very simple way to approach this is through goals scored and conceded. Arsenal scored the second highest number of goals in the league last season – 71 as opposed to ManC’s 77. So yes, maybe the ability to knock in a few more goals could be helpful.
However that doesno’t necessarily mean changing the centre forward, because all new forwards take a while to settle in. So there is every reason to think that both Gyökeres and Saka will score more next season – the former because he is no longer getting used to his fellow players and the ways of PGMO employees, while Saka hopefully he won’t spend much of the season injured.
Arsenal ended up with just six league goals fewer scored than ManC, a margin that is not insurmountable. Plus we must recall that although 77 goals was the top number for a PL club in 2024/5, the highest scoring team got 86. So it would seem likely that we are gong to need a few more goals – but injuries permitting, not a few more players.
Indeed some seasons more goals are scored by the top teams in the Premier League than we saw in the last campaign. In 2023/4 for example Arsenal scored 91 in the league, but then again ManC scored 96. It varies year by year.
In 2024/25 Arsenal had the best defence in the league with 34 goals conceded. and again last season Arsenal had the best defence letting in just 27. We can therefore expect some fairly nasty opposition tackles going in against our defence after they have just won the ball, and our players will need to be ready for that. And maybe the midfield will need to edge in just a few more goals just to make sure.
Does Arsenal go out and buy more players, ditching some of those who played their part in winning the league? No, not unless age or injury is catching up. Does some other club poach our manager? I would say certainly not.
Indeed if we look back, Arsenal has not always managed the consistency theme well. The first league title for example was gained in 1931. The following season Arsenal came second, but there was quite a drop in performance. The club scored 37 fewer goals, although did concede 11 fewer as well, and did reach the final of the FA Cup.
The biggest drop was in goals scored by our top man. Jack Lambert droped from 39 down to 26 and reports from the day that looked at the issue, concluded that clubs now knew how to defend against Arsenal. The element of surprise was gone. If you can’t kick the ball, kick Lambert.
The second time Arsenal won the league was 1933. The goals total was an incredible 118, although 61 were conceded. Cliff Bastin got 33 goals and Arsenal’s solution to the problems spotted in 1932 was to assume that the opposition was going to focus on defence, and find unexpected ways of attacking, while leaving two at the back to handle any counter attack.
Our third league victory was the following season in 1934. Cliff Bastin was still top scorer but now only with 15 and the goals scored shark to 75, which just goes to show, there are many different ways to win the league. Arsenal’s answer was to let the opposition try and mark the forwards out of the game, but still knock up the wins, even if it was only by a goal or two.
The fourth league title was in 1935, which if you are paying attention you will realise made it three league titles in a row and by now we had the incredible Ted Drake scoring the goals – 44 of the 115 that club got in its 42 league matches. So there we were, three league titles in a row.
Three in a row was in fact enough, and no one wanted to appear greedy so Arsenal then waited until 1937 for the fifrth title (although Arsenal did pick up the FA Cup the year before) and this time we had Ted Drake knocking the goals in.
That was it up to the second world war, but Arsenal did celebrate the summer of my birth by winning the league, this time with Ronnie Rooke knocking in 33 goals. Every title is important of course but there was a lot of talk post-war that the old order would change as so many men had been lost to the conflict, aside from those whose careers had come to a natural conclusion through getting older. Yet that win in 1947/8 suggested some things never change.
But thereafter Arsenal did have to wait a little long – until 1952/3 in fact – for the next title, now with Doug Lishman scoring 25 goals. Yes there had been a world war but Arsenal had picked up a couple of titles thereafter, so not everything had changed.
But in fact things had changed becasue following the title in 1953 Arsenal now had to wait under 1970/71 when the club not only won the league again, but also the FA Cup for the club’s first ever Double. Ray Kennedy was the top scorer with 26 goals.
That double season suggested there was more to come but that was not the case. For although Arsenal were runners up in the FA Cup in 1972 there were no more league titles despite the forward line of Radford and Kennedy. Even the arrival of Malcolm MacDonald with 29 goals in 1976/7 could not deliver the silverware. So another lesson was learned: winning the Double doesn’t always announce the start of another glrious run.
And even when things improved in the late 70s, it was cup finals rather than league titles that were delivered. We are not counting runners-up positions although there was a rush of them in the late 70s but it was the FA Cup that delivered the silver, winning it in 1979.
And then thee was a pause until the League Cup final victory of 1987, with a real curiosity of Martin Hayes as top scorer with 24 all told. He always looked to me as if each goal he got took him by more surprise than it did those of us in the crowd.
So we had more years of no trophies, utnil 1988 brought another League Cup final (but no victory) but 1989 at last brought us the league once more and Alan Smith knocking in 25 goals.
Better still, we only had to wait another year before 1991 delivered the league again with Alan Smith knocking in 27 goals. But then another long wait until 1998 for the FA Cup once more
And now I will break from just celebrating wins, beceause 1998/9 and the following two seasons was the first run of second place finishes in the league – three in a row just as we have so recently seen. And indeed in the fourth season – as in our most recent past we won the league. How history loves to repeat itself.. And lest we forget 2001/2 was the second double. Football does indeed run in waves, which is why I suspect this coming campaign could be rather jolly.
More anon….
Goals scored means nothing, goals against means nothing. It is who you scored them against and who you received them by.
Eg scoring 1 goal against Manchester City is harder than scoring 3 goals against Wolves.
If our strikers are scoring goals mainly against poor opposition but cannot score against teams approximately competitively on par with ourselves then we need that extra bit of quality in a world class striker that will be judged when performing against better opponents rather than end of year totals.
Also the goal differences doesn’t always reflect league positions and years performances.
In 2015, when Leicester won the league, Arsenal Finnished 2nd with 65GF & 36GA, Spurs finished 3rd with both better 69GF & better 35GA than Arsenal, but we still finished above them with slightly inferior goal figures.
When I look at a Strikers STATS being over the golden 20 mark, I always look at whether any of them were penalties and to strong a team they were scored against.
Players like Wayne Rooney was majestic at being a big game player, that may have not been hitting the 20 golden mark, but always came up with the top quality goal against the very best opponents.
Also youve got the tactical opponents that will make it harder for the like of Arsenal forwards with the likes of Martinelli that requires running space to flourish, as he did internationally against open and less park the bus type teams. Then you got a top half mid table team like Aston Villa, who’s opponents are less likely to park the bus, and therefore the likes of Rogers, Watkins etc.. are going to hit 20 plus goal contribution figures as the opposition are more open in their play.
I would like to see more Arsenal players able to carry the ball through the brick wall defences, with maybe that bit of 5yard acceleration which we don’t have, also a striker that can contribute to more headed set piece goals instead of mainly our defenders like Gabriel.
What I am saying is yes we need more tactical variety as teams will be more ready for our pass out from the back, our corner set piece movements, our keep possession going nowhere across the backline.
We will need not just a few new players but also different needed gifted players, to excite the fans by that 5yard dribbling acceleration to break pass the bus, or by that agressive technically skillful striker. Or that ball carrying midfield that is always turning and running forward with the ball of making late surprise runs in the box.
These are the things we miss to improve tactically, which is why Arteta is looking at those type of players to give us another tactical edge next season against the teams that will familiarise with our predictable way of playing, to add that element of surprise to both excite the fans and get the results against the better defending teams.
But in adding 3 or 4 exceptional players we also need to be aware that a 3 or 4 players will be leaving anyway by there own wishes, and that we can still improve with new tactical quality additions, and at the same time keep our status quo, by keeping our existing players as well.
I also think we should invest more in under 21s and give shorter loan out periods like 6months instead of 12months, to cover future second half season injuries. If not needed they can always get their loan extended.
OT,
there seems to be an inquiry about the behaviour of the Argentina team, covering the Malvinas flag and the unsportsmanlike conduct at the end of the final and the presentaiton of the trophy.
What do you think about sanctions ? I can’t remember what the announced punishement in Quatar had been if players would have worn a rainbow armband, so I’d say that it ught tobe at least the same punishment.
As for the unsportsmanlike conduct, in my opinion this should be a real massive sanction. The example given to any kids in the world, the spite and contempt shown are just intolerable – and I’m not even talking about the agression at the end of the game – that did get a little dealt with.
But I’d be for a 2 year ban on international football for the whole squad or even Argentina to teach them a lesson and kill that arrogance and sense of entitlement they have shown. And a hefty fine that equals what each player got for participating in the final : they did not participate to the end, did they ? They all turned their back.
I have great faith that MA and his team know what we need and they have the know all on how to get them . My hope is that we improve on all fronts and show an improvement on last season. That a few may have to leave and make way for the new guys is a given. To those leaving us , we wish you well in your future , and for what we are about to receive , we thank you for choosing us !
Up the Gunners !