Toughest or easiest to win in years?

[jonny3110]

After yesterday's result we are now firm favs for the title. Whether you agree with that or not, I personally believe if we do it, it will be Arsene's greatest achievement and my reasoning is it's the toughest season in recent memory to do it. The reason I say that is because anyone can beat anyone period. The bookies have absolutely mopped up this season and you can't call anything! I personally sit on the side of the fence that it's now harder to be consistent than it was even 3 - 4 years ago. Leicester are top, and Stoke have more Champions League winners than any other team at their disposal. Getting 3 points any week is a very tough task! Long gone are the days of a gimme game, all teams have quality.

I also don't buy into this it's the best chance in years as some big teams have fell away. United will be in a period of transition for many years to come - Fergie knew it and got out of dodge double quick. Chelsea will be back yes but actually think we're seeing some of the old guard off and how tricky that is to fix, and the same for City bar addition of KDB and Sterling. They will bounce back to an extent but won't be an overnight next season all guns blazing we're back. Lack of known quality in the market is all there for us to see...look at Mangala. They paid £42.5 million for him, the same we laid out for Ozil

So I put it to you lot, do you think this is the easiest season to lift the title as some (and only some) of the usual suspects have dropped, or actually the hardest season to lift it as consistency is so hard to find with the teams outside the so called Top 4 all better equipped and fighting for everything...by the way in no way am I stating we have a hand on it! I can't see past us or Citeh this season, but I know us...we've been here before haven't we Just how I will see whoever does come out in May holding it as some achievement!

[Gunner Rob]

it is the easiest to win in years because there are problems at all the big clubs.

the fact that everyone can beat everyone is to Wenger's advantage. basically he is not capable of putting together a really top team anymore, BUT this season he doesnt maybe need to and we could still possibly fall over the line.

i know the bookies now have us favourites but to be honest I still see Man City as clear favourites.
they could potentially go on a long winning run in the new year. Can we? I'm still not totally convinced

I would say we are certainties for the top 3.

[Yankee_Gooner_Dandee]

It's probably easiest to be honest. I mean, let's be real for a second. This team we have would never be close to a team like 2009 Man U with Ronaldo, Tevez, Rooney, Van der Sar, etc. We would be 10 points back. There are no really strong teams in the Prem right now, but I actually am enjoying this season more than usual because it is so evenly balanced and competitive. Week in, week out, it is a battle in every game. It makes it more enjoyable when results are not foregone conclusions.

[augie]

There is no PROBABLY the easiest........it is the easiest by a country mile and not winning it should be classed as a massive failure by any/all of the big clubs
You refer to the fact that all the small clubs are taking points off the big teams, but that means that the league is more competitive than before and not that it is a better quality. The reason why it is more competitive is because the big teams are as weak as I have seen in 30+ years - I still think that citeeh will win it this season, but they will do so with no decent full backs (wtf has happened to zabaleta ? ), average centre backs, a lazy and totally disinterested yaya, and only one (albeit world class) quality striker

This is a very average Arsenal team - with the exception of kos none of our defenders would even make the bench on our past league winning teams. Our midfield is porous and when everybody is available it is lop sided because we have too many similar players. Our strike force is totally devoid of a world class striker who would make the difference between success and nearly - I would liken our forwards to the whole Moneyball philosophy where we have a few players capable of chipping in with 10+ goals, but none capable of firing us to glory

That being said, there is a league title just begging for us to win it this season - if we had an ambitious/ruthless manager in charge of us, I would put the house on us winning the league. However we have a manager that will refuse to buy a DM upgrade on coquelin (believe me there are a few out there), and nor will he break the bank for that world class striker (reus would work for me). Beating citeeh and manure will be seen by le cock as a vindication of his beliefs and management, and he will be very much of the mindset that if it isnt broke then dont fix it IF he buys, he will buy a DM to back up coquelin instead of buying an upgrade on him

[StuartL]

it is the easiest to win in years because there are problems at all the big clubs.

the fact that everyone can beat everyone is to Wenger's advantage. basically he is not capable of putting together a really top team anymore, BUT this season he doesnt maybe need to and we could still possibly fall over the line.

i know the bookies now have us favourites but to be honest I still see Man City as clear favourites.
they could potentially go on a long winning run in the new year. Can we? I'm still not totally convinced

I would say we are certainties for the top 3.

We have played and beaten City and Utd at home, drawn with Spuds and Scousers at home and lost at Chelsea out of the traditional "big clubs" matches this season

That means we have an awful lot of away matches yet to come which will be tough tests, throw in Stoke away, our traditional bottle job and I am still unconvinced that we will see it through, as just one more injury will scupper us.

A significant purchase in January of either a top class DM, or striker could well be enough to see us over the line.

Certainly cant see a striker coming seeing as Giroud and Walcott got improved contracts in the summer and are both sharing the goals, with Campbell contributing to the team balance working has arse off I fear Wenker believes, overall, that that is sufficient with Wellbeck waiting in the (hospital) wings.

Whatever happens here on in it has been an enjoyable season with Leicester, Palace, Watford all producing results above their expectations and Chelsea and the Mancs performing below par.
Also good to see Villa struggling, and we have the chance to see them relegated on the last day of the season.

[northbank123]

If anybody seriously thinks that this is a harder league to win than besting the Invincibles, or Chelsea of 2005 (1 defeat), or United/Chelsea in 2008 with Ronaldo banging in goals for fun and the two best sides in Europe in the league for example, they need sectioning.

The only reason that "anyone can beat anyone" is because the sides at the top are so inconsistent. The league hasn't suddenly got miles better than last year, when a Chelsea side who were not a patch on any of those above and got their pants pulled down in Europe were able to sew up the title by November.

Forget the strength in the rest of the league - tricky sides like Stoke and Southampton are never going to win the league. Fundamentally all you have to do to win the league in any year is winning more points than your challengers, therefore when you're thinking about hardest/easiest league to win the ability of the mid-table and relegation sides are frankly irrelevant.

And for the record I don't think the league necessarily has much more depth than ever. Look back at 2001/02 for example, when you had four or five sides around Christmas who were all capable of winning the league. Look back a couple of years even when Spurs sides with the likes of Modric and Bale were showing quality and consistency that Spurs had never got near and still couldn't reach the CL; this season they are playing insipid turd every week and could feasibly finish 3rd.

[Top Londoner]

" it will be Arsene's greatest achievement and my reasoning is it's the toughest season in recent memory to do it"




Sorry, but I stopped reading after that.

WENGER OUT

[augie]

" it will be Arsene's greatest achievement and my reasoning is it's the toughest season in recent memory to do it"




Sorry, but I stopped reading after that.

WENGER OUT

Very valid point - maybe I should have adopted the same view

[Top Londoner]

Not sure if you're being facetious augie
I'm fed up with any new angle for an excuse to fail to win the league, as the thread title poster supports.
Wenger has been dining out on goodwill for fucking years,
and some people are stretching the limits of human imagination for another glorious failure.
I may not be so eloquent with my responses, but my views on ARSENE fuck off WENGER remain the same.


WENGER OUT

[Herd]

Well I would happily eat a large slice of humble pie and win it rather than feasting on bitterness and crow !
Don't care how don't care why just want us to win the fucking thing !

[VoiceOfReason]

We have played and beaten City and Utd at home, drawn with Spuds and Scousers at home and lost at Chelsea out of the traditional "big clubs" matches this season

That means we have an awful lot of away matches yet to come which will be tough tests, throw in Stoke away, our traditional bottle job and I am still unconvinced that we will see it through, as just one more injury will scupper us.

Good point. We're doing well this season, but I'm still not convinced we can turn up at the genuinely big clubs and get wins when needed. Even in their worst season for decades, we still got rolled over 2-0 at Chelsea, and with trips to Man City, Man Utd, Liverpool, Tottenham, Everton and Stoke to come, this title win may not be as clear as the bookies might think.

Last season, we only won one of those six away trips. The table's so tight that I'm not necessarily sure we can afford to drop points in as many games as that.

[QuartzGooner]

I think that it is different from the previous title challenges under Wenger....in some respects harder, others easier.
I will try to explain this seeming contradiction?

Instead of having one or two very strong rivals, we now have 19 teams who can beat anyone on their day (and Villa, who cannot.)

I actually think that it is therefore harder for all teams to get into the top four because the teams are more similar in ability.

But that similarity means it is easier for us in particular as Arsenal to actually win it, because there are not one or two teams who have built up a big points lead ahead of us.

We are almost at half way stage, and nine points separate first from fifth placed clubs.
That is by no means an uncatchable lead for the team in fifth.

[northbank123]

Well I would happily eat a large slice of humble pie and win it rather than feasting on bitterness and crow !
Don't care how don't care why just want us to win the fucking thing !

Absolutely. Nothing would give me more happiness than having egg on my face watching us celebrate something I never thought we'd win.

[Midz]

Well I would happily eat a large slice of humble pie and win it rather than feasting on bitterness and crow !
Don't care how don't care why just want us to win the fucking thing !

Agreed.

[nut flush gooner]

Lets be honest about this the PL has declined in standard (relative to other European Leagues) for several years now.

The same comments where made after SAF left Manure and we where top of the league a few seasons back. This season Chelski are out of it, City seem to have a lot of player issues and twats like Carragher are picking up on this.

I also don't buy the theory that the lesser teams in England have improved and that is making our league more open. True you usually have one stand out team (ie leicester) that goes on a ridiculous run only to fade in the second half of the season. But overall comparing the teams of the biggest sides, you can say the likes of us, and Manure have worse squads than we 10 or 15 years ago. Chelski have also had better teams in the last 10 years.

So overall I would say it's possibly easier. Regardless of this, if we win the league and the doom sayers pick faults at the achievement, I for one wont hold back. And I am definitely not a AKB.