What Can Arsenal Realistically Achieve This Season?

When we think about how the first season with Unai Emery at the helm concluded, it’s fair to say that after the team had shown plenty of promise throughout the campaign, the ultimate outcome was both frustrating and disappointing. Still, there were also positives on which to build, after what proved to be a steep learning curve in English football for the Spaniard.

Arsenal finished fifth in the Premier League after a poor final run of results, missing out on the chance to compete in the Champions League. Making that worse for fans, the Gunners had finished just one point behind Chelsea in fourth, and two behind Spurs in third. One or two better results in the league might have made all the difference, but it wasn’t to be.

Rubbing salt into the wounds, Arsenal capitulated in the Europa League final. Emery’s talismanic past hadn’t accompanied the Spaniard in the competition this time around, having won the trophy on three consecutive occasions during his successful tenure at Sevilla. Nevertheless, miracles typically don’t happen overnight.

Following so many years with Arsene Wenger at the helm, the new era under Emery was always going to be fraught with difficulties. Now the honeymoon period is over, Arsenal are expected to push on and make progress. But what are the expectations for the 2019/20 season, given how the campaign has commenced?

Premier League Top Four

Thinking sensibly, most Arsenal fans will be content if the team can finish within the top four this season. Indeed, the latest soccer odds suggest that Emery’s team can achieve that objective. Clinching third or fourth in the Premier League will be genuine progress, with qualification for the Champions League a step in the right direction.

Manchester City and Liverpool are so far ahead of everyone else, both in terms of squad depth and overall quality, many Arsenal fans might realistically accept that catching them will take time. While we can all dream of Emery guiding his team towards a Premier League title challenge, in reality, this team is a wide margin away from that happening this season; even though David Luiz remains optimistic and believes otherwise.

What will be required from Emery and the team is consistency and lasting power, which is where everything fell apart at the end of last season. Having only lost two of their opening ten games of the 2019/20 campaign thus far, results would indicate this Arsenal team might be harder to beat compared to last season.

We can all complain about individual or collective performances, yet the only thing that really matters is getting the right results. There will be more tactical tinkering by Emery, while he’s also guaranteed to keep shuffling his player options, before settling on his best eleven. Such things are anecdotal at best, if the end result is Arsenal finishing in the top four this season.

EFL Cup & FA Cup

The months of December and January were a topsy-turvy period for Arsenal last season. Along with mixed form in the Premier League, the domestic cup competitions produced forgettable results. After beating Brentford and Blackpool to reach the EFL Cup quarter finals, defeat against Spurs at the Emirates ended any hopes of further progress.

Meanwhile, the FA Cup featured another game against Blackpool, who were comfortably dealt with away in the third round. A home draw in the fourth round against Manchester United seemed to favour Arsenal, yet it was the Red Devils who left the Emirates with a 1-3 victory, leaving Arsenal prematurely eliminated from both domestic cup competitions.

This season Emery will be keen to see his team make a serious push for at least one of the cups. Although finishing in the top four of the Premier League must be considered the priority, Arsenal should always be aiming to win at least one piece of silverware. Their Spanish coach will also regard that as being an important part of the club’s progress under his leadership.

Europa League

Up until the final itself, last season’s run in the Europa League bore all the hallmarks of Emery. After all, a large part of his managerial renown came from three consecutive triumphs in the competition with Sevilla. Following an almost flawless group stage, the knockout phase saw Arsenal get past difficult opponents in the shape of BATE, Rennes, Napoli and Valencia.

Controversy surrounding the trip to Baku for the final and Mkhitaryan unwilling to travel to Azerbaijan, clearly didn’t help Arsenal’s preparations. Chelsea were rampant and ran out 4-1 winners, while the Gunners missed a priceless opportunity to earn a Champions League that had eluded them in the Premier League.

Given that Arsenal are competing in the Europa League again this season, lifting the trophy this time will undoubtedly be amongst Emery’s priorities. Comprehensive wins against Eintracht Frankfurt and Standard Liege have set his team on the right path, with the dangling carrot of another route to the Champions League a worthwhile prize, along with the trophy itself.

Equipped to Succeed?

Only time will tell if Arsenal’s activity in the summer transfer window was successful, or not. The club did break their own transfer record with the £72m capture of Nicolas Pépé from Lille, with the Ivory Coast international largely impressive so far. David Luiz and Kieran Tierney were both shrewd defensive signings, although we’ve yet to see the best of them.

One for the future, Gabriel Martinelli has bags of potential and the Brazilian teenager will need time to settle, before his true impact becomes more apparent. Meanwhile, the arrival of Dani Ceballos was a very positive addition, especially after losing Aaron Ramsey on a free transfer. The Spanish midfielder joined from Real Madrid on loan, and already, he’s shown exciting glimpses of what he can offer.

Looking at the squad from an objective point of view, while strength and depth remains a hot topic of discussion amongst fans, Emery certainly has plenty of options available to work with this season. There’s a good mixture of youth and experience, not to mention quality in key areas, which should help Arsenal achieve their objectives this season.

While a push for the Premier League title is perhaps beyond the capability of this squad, betting odds support the possibility of a top four finish, and that shouldn’t be the limit to ambitions. Another serious tilt at the Europa League is possible with this group of players, while it’s impossible to rule out a run in the FA Cup or EFL Cup, if draws are favourable and form is there at the right time.