Arsenal’s pursuit of the top four takes another twist

Another week, another angle on the table. Arsenal didn’t kick a ball over the weekend while Liverpool and Chelsea played out a League Cup final classic, all the while the Premier League top four hunt became one game older.

It started with Manchester United’s tepid home performance against Watford, one where a gluttony of chances went begging for the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo and Bruno Fernandes to hand them another big Champions League setback. Few saw that coming.

Ralf Rangnick can do no more when his players continue to be so wasteful, while their internal struggles also keep impacting their results, all of which is to their rivals’ benefit.

Having beaten Wolves in dramatic fashion last time out, Bruno Lage’s side were back in the capital on Sunday to take on another top four contender, West Ham. Neither side are seen as frontrunners to secure that elusive position but they’re not completely out of it yet. The winner of the game would fancy their chances.

Arsenal’s pursuit of the Premier League top four takes another twist as Manchester United drop points while West Ham beat Wolves

Wolves, having looked so strong across recent weeks, fell to a 1-0 loss. It’s a result David Moyes’ side sorely needed, and one that puts another twist in the tale as the Hammers looked dead and buried with their performances of late looking increasingly limp.

Where does it leave the table? It still leaves it just favouring Arsenal…and Tottenham.

Arsenal have three games in hand to make up two points on Manchester United, with Spurs having two matches to make up a five point deficit on the Red Devils. The Hammers are level on points with Arsenal after playing three more matches, and Wolves are five points adrift having played two more than the Gunners.

It’s looking good for the red half of north London, although it isn’t too shabby for Spurs either.

This race for the top four will likely go down to the wire, and making firm predictions now can very easily make you look foolish since it takes but two gameweeks for this section of the table to flip on its head, yet it does appear as if there is a individual battle brewing between Mikel Arteta and Antonio Conte’s respective sides.

Which, of course, works brilliantly for the narrative with Sky Sports still yet to rearrange the North London Derby, which will nestle neatly midweek somewhere in May one would imagine.

But these two sides do have the opportunity to pull clear, with West Ham about to kick into their European campaign against Sevilla before facing Spurs in the league, United having a torrid run of fixtures coming up with their own European fixtures as well, all the while Wolves now have serious ground to make up.

A four horse race might just have two pulling clear. Given how Spurs are the only club in history to finish third in a two horse race, that might be somewhat favourable.