The evidence as to why Arsenal should position themselves as capable of completing a domestic and European Double this season came across three days in the past week.
Not for who they beat, Tottenham and Bayern Munich, but how they did it. Spurs were dismantled and Bayern — the man-for-man machine tuned by Vincent Kompany — ruffled, leading to mild accusations from Joshua Kimmich about set pieces and long balls.
These were two distinct plans to overcome very different opposition — 57 per cent of the ball last Sunday, 40 per cent on Wednesday — and indicated a flexibility that Mikel Arteta has not exactly been renowned for over his six years in charge. That, and significant investment in the transfer market, is why Arsenal will be feared across the continent.
They have the tools to become only the fourth club in England to lift the league and European Cup in the same season. The other three are the giants of the North West, all currently looking on enviously.
How Arteta engineered his way through this week bore some resemblance to Pep Guardiola, whose more pragmatic tendencies have often been overlooked during his decade here.
But having watched City complete the Treble two years ago, that is where the similarities end for now — largely because Arsenal have started like a train. The misconception around City has been that they romped to league titles yet the reality is somewhat different. The mind often plays tricks with the public’s recall.
Mikel Arteta should believe Arsenal can win the Premier League and Champions League
The Gunners are rampant and have shown their tactical flexibility in the past week
It is exceptionally rare that City have ever been six points clear at the end of November. The only time was in the record-breaking Centurions campaign of 2017-18 and they’ve only led the way once in the past six seasons at this stage (Guardiola’s all-time numbers: -1, +8, +2, -9, -3, -3, -1, +1, -8, -7).
Of Guardiola’s 10 years, just three of them saw City top after 12 matches. In the Treble year, they were a point adrift of Arsenal and with a home defeat by Brentford to absorb. Only two of their titles were runaway jobs but one of those, 2020-21, saw them seventh and three points behind. They ended up winning by 12 points, the first of four consecutive crowns.
You never really saw it coming with City and only once was a successful campaign truly telegraphed before Christmas, albeit Liverpool dumped them out of the Champions League en route to the final. That ought to serve as a warning to Arsenal, that plundering the league doesn’t necessarily translate to Europe.
Pundits never seemed to learn with City. Social media’s bin fire and the shouty radio stations always rushed to proclaim that this was it, the year it would collapse. False dawns for the chasing pack until 2024, when injuries mounted and the desire evaporated.
Before then and amid damaging defeats, there was always a calm around Guardiola that they would start motoring and that title win in 2021 was down to 15 straight wins. It can be no coincidence that they reached a first Champions League final at the end of that season.
Going past a Borussia Dortmund team with Jude Bellingham and Erling Haaland, sweeping aside Paris Saint-Germain in the semi-finals, is what momentum generated by league form does for you and what City have always traded on.
Arteta’s task is to keep it going, find new ways of relentlessly ticking off games, and that doesn’t feel like it will be particularly easy from this far out.
But they should heed the warnings from City and Liverpool – who have both fallen in Europe despite running away with the Premier League
They have been in commanding situations before and fallen away and there also exists a lack of winning experience. That will be at the forefront of Arteta’s mind and it would be strange if it weren’t.
Stumbling in the league appears less likely this time, though, with added resolve and more quality in the squad. Logic suggests it should not happen and they ought to end the long wait for league glory — 22 years, their longest title drought since winning their first in 1931.
Whether that translates to Europe is another matter entirely, even having invested in the requisite tools to scale heights few have managed. The difficulties and obstacles which lie ahead only serve to illustrate the monumental achievements of Liverpool, Manchester United and City.
