Arsenal: 4 things needed to secure Premier League top four

3. Do Not Lose the Head-to-Head Matches

Glancing at the fixture list now offers up an incredibly inviting set of matches for Arsenal to see the season out. That is, of course, before factoring in the games that still need to be rearranged: Tottenham (A), Chelsea (A), Liverpool (H).

The Spurs game is gigantic. It wouldn’t be a surprise whatsoever if it gets moved to April so it can garner all the hype possible and be billed as a top-four-deciding encounter. Which, probably, it will be already.

As much as beating Tottenham on their patch is the sweetest feeling, and one supporters haven’t been able to soak up in the league since Tomas Rosicky’s rocket at White Hart Lane secured a 1-0 victory some nearly eight years ago, if given the chance then a draw would be taken.

That will depend on where the teams are in the league by that point but this will be a tight race in which the head-to-head matches will play a significant role. Arsenal also host Manchester United at the Emirates where once again losing is simply not acceptable.

Not known how the table will look come these fixtures, one absolute certainty is that defeat can be catastrophic. While Arsenal have already lost to United this season, there were fixtures that followed where that could be amended. In this tight race – it is still tight despite other results – not presenting the opponent with any boost becomes paramount.

Those two matches in particular are huge.

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