Last season, Arsenal could really do no more. The Gunners set club records for most Premier League wins in a season and most Premier League goals in a campaign, while only in their 2003-04 title-winning year did they earn more points, but Manchester City were still insurmountable.
This year, unfathomably, they have to do even more. Their defence is the best in the league and they have world-leading stars further forward, while their manager is willing to try anything to end 20 years of hurt in north London, including employing pickpockets – professionals “stole” (and gave back) items from the players at a pre-season meal to hammer home the need to be switched on mentally – to keep his players alert at all times on and off the pitch.
Cementing their status as nearly men, however, seemed on the cards for another year as they appeared to have been bewitched by their Aston Villa hoodoo on Saturday. Bukayo Saka was unable to work his magic, an impenetrable backline struggled to keep out the determined Villans and Declan Rice was powerless to contain the rampaging Morgan Rogers from bursting through the heart of the Gunners midfield like wet tissue paper.
この記事は The Independent の August 26, 2024 版に掲載されています。
7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、9,000 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。
すでに購読者です ? サインイン
この記事は The Independent の August 26, 2024 版に掲載されています。
7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、9,000 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。
すでに購読者です? サインイン
Draper puts health first in his bid to break the top 10
Brit No 1 managing hip problem ahead of Australian Open
Arteta needs a 'can opener' to cure misfiring Gunners
Mikel Arteta is aware that Arsenal need more “explosiveness” in attack, and his staff are looking to rectify this in the January transfer window, although much of this would have been clear to see before Tuesday night’s Carabao Cup defeat to Newcastle United.
Hammers seek Potter magic after Lopetegui exit farce
Farewell, Julen Lopetegui. You leave West Ham as you arrived: unwanted by fans, and even by technical director Tim Steidten, it seems.
Spurs subdue Liverpool and dream of Wembley
It’s a bit premature to say this was a night when Tottenham Hotspur’s young team came of age, but this 1-0 victory over Liverpool was an impressive show of maturity when they most needed it. An 18-year-old Lucas Bergvall appropriately settled it, crowning the fine work of fellow teenager Archie Gray.
FTSE 250 and pound slump as UK gilt yields hit a high
London’s stock markets faltered yesterday, with the FTSE 250 slumping to a five-month low and the pound weakening as UK long-term borrowing costs continued to spike.
Bodies of father and son hostages recovered in Gaza
The bodies of two Israeli hostages have been recovered by troops in Gaza, Israel’s defence minister said yesterday.
French minister tells Trump Europe will protect borders
France’s foreign minister Jean-Noel Barrot has fiercely defended the European Union in response to US president-elect Donald Trump’s claim that America should take ownership and control of Greenland”.
'I did my best to prevent it'
Mother of 14-year-old stabbing victim Kelyan Bokassa tells Barney Davis her heart skipped’ every time her son went out
Brexiteers left infuriated by PM's Foreign Office choice
The appointment of Theresa May’s former chief negotiator with the European Union as the most senior civil servant in the Foreign Office (FCDO) by Sir Keir Starmer is being seen as a statement of intent in his determination to reset relations with the EU.
Corbyn attacks Starmer on private sector's role in NHS
Jeremy Corbyn has accused Sir Keir Starmer of betraying” the health service by introducing a much greater role for the private sector, which he warns will hollow out the NHS.
