Premier League, it had to be this season. The League's
perennial winner, Sir Alex Ferguson, dominated the English
game for nearly three decades and after winning over a
dozen League titles, he decided to call it quits.
His recent autobiography has been the talk of the town but I
must confess that seeing Sir Ferguson on the stands is more
relieving than when I saw him on the touchline giving his
tactics to his players that didn't just know how to lose.
Whether it was from help from an official or just their sheer
ability, there was something about Manchester United's
mentality that was worth emulating in the Premier League.
Even after the losses of Cristiano Ronaldo and Carlos Tevez,
SAF still made a squad that dominated the league.
In Ferguson's absence (thank Heavens), Manchester United
summoned a David Moyes that had been a stalwart at
Everton but his record against the traditional "big four" in
their home grounds was downright abysmal. Then there was
the sacking of Roberto Mancini after he failed to win the FA
Cup against a relegation-bound Wigan and his departure
coincided with the arrival of a prestigious manager in the
form of Manuel Pellegrini. Then there was Chelsea, a club
whose chairman changes managers like the way babies
change diapers but he decided to bring a familiar face in Jose
Mourinho.
These are all great managers but they're going through
transitional phases so Arsenal, a team with a stable institution
under the guidance of a living legend like Arsene Wenger, as
well as the fact that there was no major departure this
summer (besides flushing out the deadwood), the team was
quite settled from the onset and the acquisitions of Mathieu
Flamini and Mesut Ozil gave the team a massive lift.
Arsenal has been on fine run of scintillating form and since
that slump at the Emirates stadium in the opening day of the
season a lot things as turned around in the team. Aaron
Ramsey has had a magnificent season so far bagging 11 goals
in 16 matches, he has been unstoppable in the both the
midfield areas and his confidence and composure in front of
the goal has been admirable.
It's no surprise that he has won player of the month for the
fourth consecutive time.
The Welshman has played a key part in the resurgence of the
Emirates outfit. Moreover, the signing of the Germany
playmaker Mesut Ozil was as fans expected going to have a
positive bearing on the team. And it has been amazing how
the 25-year old has seamlessly integrated into the team. The
squad looks lively more than ever and it's always beautiful to
watch Arsenal play these days.
The midfield mixture of both young exuberant players like
Aaron Ramsey, Jack Wilshere and Mesut Ozil and experienced
heads like Mikel Arteta, Mathieu Flamini and the evergreen
Tomas Rosicky gels well with the attractive football
synonymous with the Emirates outfit. The team also attacks
more often and they keep their opponents on toes especially
when moving forward. Even though there have been players
who have been sidelined by injuries, the team has really coped
well and covered up for their absence.
In the past, the squad struggled in the absences of key
players like Robin van Persie, Cesc Fabregas, Samir Nasri and
others through injury, and when they finally departed, they
left gaping holes in the squad that have been finally addressed
by the manager. Fabregas and Nasri were equally replaced by
a better pairing of Mesut Ozil and Santi Cazorla. The Gunners
also coped from the loss of van Persie with the acquisitions
of Olivier Giroud and Lukas Podolski that scored 33 goals
between them last season.
In the Premier League, Arsenal sit on the summit of the table
five points clear. They started rather poorly with a dismal
performance against Aston Villa but it was followed with five
wins in a row against Fulham, Tottenham, Sunderland, Stoke
and Swansea. West Brom dented the amazing winning run
with a draw but the Gunners have picked up where they left
off in the league defeating Norwich, Crystal Palace and most
recently, Liverpool.
On Sunday, Arsenal travel to Manchester United in another
mouth-watering clash- we all know the build up to this game
has always been. Manchester United has been trying to find
form after a shaky start of the season under the new
manager. I expect a hard game but if anything, Arsenal will
carry the day. The worst result the team may get at Old
Trafford is most likely a draw.
Arsenal also leads their UEFA Champions League group with
nine points, having just lost once at home to Borussia
Dortmund. Napoli is second placed after their Wednesday night
against Marseille. Arsenal credentials this season as real title
contenders looks more than ever.
People have talked so much about Group F which has been
tagged as the Group of Death, but they tend to forget
that in that group, Arsenal is the Team of Life.
I have got this believe that, this season, Arsenal will end up
winning something. Some may say it's too early to draw a
conclusion but if the injured players return to action and then
it happen that current form continues it will be hard to
dislodge Arsenal at the top.
The happy times are back again and if the Gunners can
maintain their level of consistency all season long, they would
win the Premier League. It's actually a marathon not a race.
