Arsenal are all in for the 2022/23 Premier League season after being knocked out of every cup competition.
The Gunners are six points clear at the top as at the time of writing, though City in second place have a game in hand, coupled with a much better goal difference.
However the season ends, the one positive for Arsenal fans is that they will surely play UEFA Champions League football in the 2023/24 season. It will be the first time they will participate in the competition since 2017.
They will, however, have to navigate a few more Premier League fixtures to both guarantee them the league title – their first in 19 years. The Gunners have lost only thrice this season, the joint best alongside Newcastle United. The best free Premier League tips currently hint at a title win for the Gunners but some key fixtures lie between them and glory.
This article takes a look at the fixtures that could determine Arsenal’s title fate come May.
Arsenal vs Southampton – April 21, 2023
Things could be different by the time this fixture comes round.
Southampton could be off the bottom of the table and Arsenal could have had their six point lead at the top cut. Based on the form of both teams and the teams around them, however, the April 21 fixture could still see the Premier League’s top team face off against the bottom team in a high stakes game.
The stakes are higher for Southampton who are staring relegation in the face. Desperate teams have a history of ruining things for other teams at this time of the season. The Saints will come out guns blazing against the Gunners and could snatch a result from the Emirates the way they did against Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City earlier this season.
Arteta will be looking forward to a tough game but he will be careful as any slip up could see the team fall to the sword of their desperate visitors.
Manchester City vs Arsenal – April 26, 2023
Last season, this would have been a game many considered a write off for the hosts, especially at this stage of the season. This season, it is considered a game that all eyes will be on for a number of reasons.
Master vs Student; Pep Guardiola vs Arteta would be going head to head in the battle to officially show whose tactics are better. Despite the many successes of Arteta at Arsenal this season, his former mentor has proven to be a hurdle he cannot overcome (just yet).
Arsenal were knocked out of the FA Cup by City. Their 11-point lead was cut to eight by City at the Emirates in what many consider as the game of the season. Should Arteta win the league without beating Guardiola even once, his run will be considered lucky and not brilliant by many neutral fans and many in the media.
Another reason will be that Arsenal’s current lead could be cut down to within five points or less, putting their first title in 19 years in jeopardy.
This will be the most important game of Arteta’s season.
Newcastle United vs Arsenal – May 7, 2023
Newcastle United are the story of the season, despite Arsenal’s fast rise to the top of English football’s elite.
The Magpies have become a totally new team under new ownership and smart management. Eddie Howe has been reborn as a manager and is leading one of the best Renaissance movements in English football.
The Saudi-backed club have also provided the former Bournemouth manager with backing for his smart transfer business in the summer and winter transfer windows. Howe has taken these resources and pushed Newcastle into the top four, a position they have not been in for over 15 years.
Against Arsenal, they will be facing off against a team who have been in the background for as long as they have. It will be a clash that neutrals will enjoy but for Howe and Arteta, it will be the opportunity to make the ultimate statement.
The winner can lay claim to being the revelation of the season and also the most improved manager in the league. It is a match with two massive egos on the line.
Arsenal vs Brighton and Hove Albion – May 14, 2023
Arsenal vs Brighton is not as high stakes as the rest, but the Seagulls have been able to brush away the toughest of challenges this season to get to where they are.
They still fall by the wayside in some games like a typical mid-table team, but like a typical mid-table team, they are very good at getting results.
Arsenal could have won the league by this point if they got all the needed points from their matches leading up to this one. If this is the case, Brighton will be a bragging rights game. If things turn out to be the opposite, beating Brighton will be the game that seals the league title for Arsenal after 19 years.
Their last clash saw Arsenal fight to keep for three points at the AMEX after Roberto De Zerbi’s men began an impressive fightback.
Before that, the Seagulls knocked the Gunners out of the EFL Cup with a convincing performance and win.
Arteta will be plotting as will De Zerbi, who is on the verge of European football for Brighton for the first time in a long time.
