With every match that goes by, Arsenal are establishing themselves as serious contenders for the Premier League title.
While it’s true the Gunners were in a better position this time last season, leading the league over Manchester City before ultimately capitulating in the final stages, there’s a different feel about Mikel Arteta’s side this campaign.
Arsenal’s mentality – or lack of it – was questioned again after their successive post-Christmas defeats by West Ham and Fulham at the end of 2024. It seemed as though the condemnatory narrative that plagued last season’s title push would come back to haunt the team once again, but they have been nothing short of sensation in the Premier League since the turn of the year.
Despite sitting two points behind the Reds and one adrift of second-place Manchester City, Arsenal are the in-form team in the Premier League and have significantly boosted their goal difference over the last two months – a factor that could prove crucial come the end of the season.
Arsenal dismantled Sheffield United with a 6-0 thrashing at Bramall Lane on Monday night
Kai Havertz bagged his third goal in as many games, continuing to prove his doubters wrong
Ahead of the January transfer window, the likes of Ian Wright, Jamie Carragher, Paul Merson were urging the Gunners to empty their pockets on a new striker, insisting the team would fall short of Premier League glory once again without a star No 9 to rely on.
Highly-rated forward targets Ivan Toney and Victor Osimhen were all ignored in January as Arteta committed to the current Gunners squad, and it’s a decision that has paid dividends even with first-choice striker Gabriel Jesus out injured.
What fans and pundits failed to recognise – and what the manager perhaps put his faith in all along – was that Arsenal’s £65million summer signing Kai Havertz was set to undergo a superb purple patch of goal-scoring form, finally showing what he can do as a hybrid forward at the apex of Arsenal’s midfield.
Havertz was the target of significant criticism at the start of the season, with several supporters labelling the ex-Chelsea star a waste of transfer funds.
In preseason, the German became the first player in the history of the MLS All-Star cross-and-volley challenge to fail to register a single point. He then failed to register a single goal or assist for the first six league matches of the campaign, whether as a No 8 in midfield or leading the line as cover for Jesus.
Given his hefty £65m price tag and slow start at the Emirates, the German international was quickly being labelled one of the flops of the transfer window. Back in September, an anonymous group of football agents even voted Havertz the worst signing of the summer.
David Raya endured a tricky start at Arsenal but has been the league’s best goalkeeper in 2024
The Spaniard made a serious of costly errors early in the season but has turned things around
Fast forward to February, midway through the Gunners’ golden run, and Gary Neville lashed out at Havertz’s ‘languid’ performance against Liverpool, criticising Arsenal for not signing a striker ahead of the run-in.
Asked whether Arsenal made a mistake in the January window, Neville said: ‘Yep. [There was money available in the summer] and they spent £65m on Havertz.
‘I watched him today Havertz when he’s moving into the box, he’s a different type of player, but he’s quite languid. There’s no change of pace into the box, there’s no change of direction, there’s no little darts.
‘And then I think of Jesus when he plays and he’s everywhere but not where you want him to be! He’s everywhere Jesus, I love him to bits, but literally when you want him in the centre of the six-yard box he’s probably on the right wing! Or at right-back!’
Since the turn of the year, Havertz has not only proved his worth in Arteta’s tactical system, breaking from midfield to support the penetrative runs of Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli from out to in, but he’s contributed significantly in terms of goals and assists.
Across the last three matches alone against Burnley, Newcastle and Sheffield United, the 24-year-old has three goals and two assists to his name, finding form ahead of Arsenal’s crucial match with reigning champions Manchester City on March 31.
David Raya is another who has proved the doubters wrong following his £3m loan move from Brentford to the Emirates this summer.
The Spaniard made a series of early errors in the Emirates net shortly after taking Aaron Ramsdale’s first-choice spot and drew criticism from Neville in October. The Manchester United legend accused Raya of ‘getting hot’ under the collar after his disappointing blunder in the Champions League against Lens.
Mikel Arteta stuck by Havertz when the German was out of form, trusting his vision in midfield
Havertz’s versality and late running from midfield has been invaluable for the Gunners in 2024
Just over a month later, and two huge errors against Luton almost cost Arsenal at Kenilworth Road, but Raya’s blushes were spared by Declan Rice’s stoppage-time winner to hand the Gunners a late 4-3 victory.
But since the turn of the year, Raya has gone from strength to strength, establishing the No 1 spot permanently over Ramsdale and contributing to the best defence in the Premier League so far.
While Gabriel Magalhaes and William Saliba are both having exceptional seasons at centre-half, Raya warrants significant praise for his work between the sticks, as he currently boasts the best save success rate (83.3%) in the Premier League in 2024.
Avid Arsenal fan Piers Morgan admitted on social media after the 6-0 hammering of Sheffield United that he was in the camp of fans doubting Raya at the start of the season.
‘I doubted Arteta’s decision to replace Ramsdale with Raya. He was right. I doubted Arteta’s faith in Havertz. He was right. I doubted Arteta’s refusal to buy a striker in January. He was right. I’ve stopped doubting Mikel Arteta,’ he said on X.
Finally, Arsenal’s marquee summer signing Rice, who arrived for a club record fee of £105m, has been nothing short of sensation at the Emirates. While Havertz is praised for his versality across a number of positions, Rice is lauded as a specialist.
With the exception of Manchester City’s Rodri, no player offers more in defensive midfield than Rice: he is highly disciplined at keeping shape, excellent in the tackle and confident driving forwards with the ball when space opens up.
Signing the England international has unshackled Martin Odegaard from concerning himself with defensive duties and helped Arteta transform last season’s 4-2-3-1 into more fashionable 4-3-3 shape.
Declan Rice, who joined for £105m in the summer, has been one of their players of the season
While impressing as a specialist in defensive midfield, Rice has chipped in with goals as well
While it’s true that few doubted Rice’s ability when he arrived from West Ham, the 25-year-old midfielder was under immense pressure after becoming the second most expensive Englishman of all time behind Jack Grealish.
Even with his sizeable price tag, Rice is in contention for signing of the season after contributing several match-winning performances in red and white. While protecting the back four superbly, the defensive midfielder has chipped in with a handful of crucial goals this campaign, netting five times and contributing six assists to Arsenal’s cause.
There’s no doubt Arsenal are in for a challenging title race against Liverpool and City over the next few months. Win it all, and Arsenal’s summer business could well be viewed as the best transfer window of the modern Premier League era.
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