Arsenal: The time is now

Özil will improve us massively and pretty much cements our place in the top 4 for me. But as a squad, we are light and come May, there could be huge regret that we did not strengthen despite the presence of significant resources to do so. Keeping fingers crossed and all that.

I am as excited as any Arsenal fan by simply visualizing and imagining all the possibilities of various plays between Santi Cazorla, Özil, Jack Wilshere, Aaron Ramsey, Tomas Rosicky, etc. The club, along with the majority of its fan base has been really fired up by this signing. Just look at the player responses. There’s genuine excitement and buzz.

Aaron Ramsey and Jack Wilshere: Talented young footballers

Arsenal are in no danger of falling out of the Top 4 but it could be argued, if they really are a threat to the other teams for the league trophy? Probably not. What could work in Arsenal’s favour is the relative stability we enjoy in comparison to other members of the Top 6 clubs in England -especially Mancehster United, Chelsea and Manchester City. Essentially, all those clubs who have changed managers.

While United are coming off the transfer window looking like absolute buffoons, City are lacking personnel in the defensive third as the shocking but completely deserved loss to Cardiff shows. Problems facing Chelsea are of a different nature.

Arsenal in all of this, have a fantastic opportunity to power ahead in the short term and set the pace if they want to be taken seriously as title challengers, as Arsene Wenger wants us to believe.

Although, I have long argued that under Wenger, every third year we have had a great team, generally preceded by minimal transfer activity with regards to the incoming-department and greater activity with regards to the outgoing-department.

Here are the examples for the said pattern:

1998 – Winning the title.2000/2001 – Should have won really.2001/2002 – Won (anomaly)2003/04 – Invincibles. The entire team carried over to 2004/05 until it was disbanded slightly.2007/08 – Again should have won the league, after a complete overhaul and nearly every member of the invincibles gone.2010/11- Catalysmic failure towards the end after along with Theo Van Nasregas, Jack Wilshere had set the world alight by beating Barcelona 2-1 and leading the league for a while.

Adding three to this roughly works out to the 2013/14 season

Majority of these years have been preceded with minimal incomings and greater outgoings in number. Which has been the case this summer.

My pre-season prediction of Arsenal finishing in the Top 3 received a massive shot in the arm thanks to the joke that was United’s transfer window. And I stand by it. Title might be a bridge too far but a domestic trophy AND a top 4 finish is definitely on the agenda and achievable.

We shall judge you in May, Arsene. As always.