In the history of the Premier League, only one team has won the runner-up position in 3 consecutive seasons. That was Arsenal from 1999 to 2001, and Manchester United won all three of these campaigns.
Mikel Arteta's team has been close to Manchester City in the last 2 campaigns. In fact, their 89 points last season were enough to secure the championship in 18 of the previous 32 Premier League campaigns.
Although they did not win last season, Arsenal have set their record number of wins in the Premier League (29). Breaking this record was not an easy task, but The Gunners have improved significantly every season under Arteta.
Arsenal have been overtaken by Man City in the final stages of both of their last two campaigns. In the 2022-2023 season, they let The Citizens close the gap by 8 points. Last season, the "Gunners" even led the way to the final round before Man City beat Tottenham.
The lack of squad depth is one of the main reasons for Arsenal's lack of steam. No team used less than 25 Arsenal players last season, but that number is equivalent to Man City. The obvious difference between the two teams is the ability to rotate the squad and maintain momentum.
Arteta has had a habit of signing versatile players in recent transfer windows. Therefore, despite a slight shortage of personnel, Arsenal have created healthy competition in positions.
Martin Odegaard and Bukayo Saka are perhaps Arsenal's only two irreplaceable pillars at the moment. They have scored a total of 90 Premier League goals in the past two seasons and started 73/78 matches in that time.
Meanwhile, Man City can freely rotate their key players. Bernardo Silva, Phil Foden and Kevin De Bruyne are key players in the second half of the season, despite playing significantly less than the Arsenal duo.
Improving the attack is a determined factor if Arsenal want to go further this season. The Gunners are not allowed to repeat waste, whether they put their faith in Kai Havertz or sign a new striker.
The Gunners have lost just one of their last 18 Premier League games. However, that (0-2 defeat to Aston Villa) was the key to their win over Man City.
In fact, Unai Emery's army was the only team to beat Arsenal in both matches last season. The Villa Park team has always been a tough opponent for Arsenal under Arteta.
The Gunners must be almost perfect if they are to prevent Man City from winning their fifth consecutive championship. And a win at Villa Park could be a catalyst for them to aim for that.
The match between Aston Villa and Arsenal takes place at 11:30 p.m. on August 24 (Vietnam time), live on VTV Cab.
