Both Arsenal and Manchester United were quite far off their respective goals for the 2023/24 Premier League campaign at the halfway stage of the season. Nevertheless, both outfits have managed to shift their fortunes around in recent matches.
Mikel Arteta and Erik ten Hag look to have found the winning formula. While neither team are favorites for fulfilling their big goals even after successive wins in the last couple of weeks, we give strong arguments as to why Arsenal can become champions and Manchester United can sneak into a top-four finish.
A statement win over Liverpool brings the Gunners straight back into title contention
‘The New Year period did not go as planned for Arsenal’ said John Pentin, football expert working for Bettingtips4you.com. Mikel Arteta’s men suffered three consecutive defeats across competitions between Boxing Day and January 7th. The run involved league losses to London rivals West Ham and Fulham as well as the 0-2 home defeat to Liverpool in the FA Cup.
Mikel Arteta then took advantage of a two-week winter break for his team. He regrouped the players who have responded with three subsequent wins since. Arsenal have bagged ten goals in the process, including five in the drubbing of Crystal Palace and three in a statement victory over Premier League leaders Liverpool.
This run brought Arteta’s troops level on points with Manchester City (who do have a game in hand) and within two points of Liverpool at the very top of the standings. In the absence of FA Cup or League Cup duties, Arsenal can fully focus on the Premier League and Champions League until the end of the season. They certainly possess enough quality to challenge the likes of Manchester City and Liverpool in the title race.
Arsenal could have easily grabbed the trophy last time out but they bottled the lead in the crunch moments of the season. Their players have learned from such mistakes and are ready to apply the experience to another potential title push. The additions of Declan Rice and Kai Havertz make the Gunners by all means stronger than last year. The bookmakers still don’t trust Arteta and his troops, pricing them at 13/2 to lift the Premier League trophy. Is it time for us to punish them?
Manchester United move to sixth as ten Hag finally finds his ideal XI
While Arsenal’s displays in the first half of the season were underwhelming, what should we say for United? Erik ten Hag’s troops have received so much criticism so far in the campaign and for a good reason. The humiliating Champions League bottom finish in the group with Bayern Munich, FC Copenhagen, and Galatasaray gave a massive blow to the fans.
The team’s domestic displays have not been much better either. Erik ten Hag has been struggling a lot to find his ideal starting lineup throughout the whole season. Nonetheless, things look much different at the turn of the year. Manchester United opened 2024 with four wins and a draw in five outings across competitions. They’ve scored twice or more in each of the games along the way. The Red Devils have been particularly impressive in the 3-0 thumping of direct rivals for European places West Ham United at Old Trafford. With Rasmus Hojlund leading the line, Bruno Fernandes in the playmaker role, Marcus Rashford on his preferred left flank, and Alejandro Garnacho on the right, Manchester United are deadly in the final third.
Looking at the standings after 23 rounds, the Red Devils are just eight points shy of Aston Villa in fourth place. Should they keep such a scintillating attacking form going in the weeks and months to come, Champions League football does not look as impossible to get as it did just a month ago. The bookmakers are even more generous with this market, pricing the Red Devils at 8/1 to secure a top-four finish at the end of the season.
