Predicted starting eleven against Chelsea

#AFCvCFC

There is a lot to not like about Chelsea, which makes tomorrow a really important game for us. Points-wise, this game is not an absolutely vital one but, should we win, we strengthen our grip on second place, and send a really strong message to our rivals. While we are not going to catch Chelsea to win the title this year, a win would make it 9 on the bounce in the league and show that we really are capable of beating anyone. If we could remain unbeaten for the rest of the season then it would put us in a really good place for the start of the next campaign.

Let's not believe our own hype just yet

#BFCvAFC #Bellerin #Walcott

Don't get me wrong, there are plenty of reasons to be positive at the moment, but the media would have us believe we're right up there with Chelsea competing for the title, when the reality is that we're still 7 points behind having played one game more. The moment we start believing that the hard work is done and we've arrived, is the moment we go to Burnley thinking we've already won just by turning up. There are, however, no easy games in the Premier League and, as Wenger stated recently, we need to match Burnley's work rate if we are to win this game.

Walcott needs to improve on practice run before Monaco

#AFCvWHU #MONvAFC

Since the huge disappointment of our loss to Monaco, our performances in winning our next four games have been really encouraging. Professional performances against Everton and QPR enabled us to brush them aside without needing to play our best, and against Man United we deployed a very similar system to the one that we used so successfully when we travelled to Man City.

Which Arsenal will turn up today?

#AFCvEFC

So our frustrations continue...

Wenger often speaks of the importance of consistency, yet we've struggled to find much this season. Just when things were starting to look up, we lost to Spurs, and we've had to fight to win subsequent games against Leicester, Middlesbrough and Crystal Palace. Then, having won three games, we seemed to expect to be able to brush Monaco aside with ease, giving them less respect than we gave Palace in the previous game.

Arsenal conclude transfer business with Gabriel, having let four strikers go

#WelcomeGabriel #WelcomeBielik #AFCvAVFC

At last we've signed a defender! Gabriel is a 24 year old Brazilian who cost £11.2million, from Villarreal. His arrival, along with that of Bielik, a young but physical midfielder, and the recent emergence of Coquelin, has gone some way to addressing the weaknesses in our squad in central defence and defensive midfield. Having also let four strikers (Podolski, Sanogo, Campbell and Afobe) leave, our squad is now looking a lot more balanced and less top-heavy. Hopefully one or more of the loaned out strikers can still return, more experienced, to make the break through at Arsenal.

Thoughts on Man City 0 - 2 Arsenal, and predicted line-up against Brighton

#MCFCvAFC #BHAvAFC

So, after a turbulent couple of months, things are beginning to look up again! How quickly expectations have risen as we demonstrate the discipline required to fell one of the giants.

Spurs (H), Gala (H) and now Chelsea (A). 4-2-3-1 or 4-1-4-1? Predicted line-up.

#CFCvAFC #COYG

Chelsea away is arguably the toughest Premier League game we will face this season, and follows a draw and a win in our last two games against Spurs and Galatasaray. This is a massive opportunity to show that we've improved compared to last season, particularly away from home against the big teams, and put to bed the demons still lingering from the equivalent fixture last season. It is also, however, a chance to go 9 points behing the leaders after just 7 games, effectively waving goodbye to our title aspirations already. There is a lot at stake here, to say the least.

Finances looking good ahead of Villa game - predicted line-up

#AVFCvAFC

We've just announced profits of £4.7m for the year ending 31 May 2014, with turnover increasing to over £300m. I'm intrigued that, while profits are just £4.7m, our cash reserves have increased from £119.6m to £173.3m. In delving deeper, this seems to be because we received payments for transfers that had previously been agreed, so this increase in cash didn't count as profit. Also, we have credit arrangements on some player purchases, meaning that some of this cash is already spent, and therefore misleading.

Predicted starting eleven against Man City

#AFCvMCFC #COYG

I can't wait for this game! After an international break it always feels like it's been way too long since the last Arsenal game, and what a game to come back to. We've had tests and chances to show that we've improved this season, but this is the biggest yet. Beating Man City 3-0 in the Community Shield was really satisfying, and yet there still remained some doubts. Yes, we played well, but the impression I was left with was that Man City either weren't quite ready yet, or didn't really take the game very seriously. That will not be the case this time.

Predicted starting eleven against Besiktas, with thoughts on Sanogo and Alexis

#AFCvBES #COYG

 So, right on cue for our most important game of the season so far, Giroud breaks his foot and won't play again until the New Year. Alexis started as the central striker in our last game against Everton but was replaced at half-time by Giroud, with the latter proving to be much more effective in the role. It has been clear for well over a year now that we need backup for Giroud in the squad, but it's still unclear what Wenger's plans are. In such a high stakes game, we will see what Wenger considers to be his strongest available eleven, and therefore gain insight into what his plans have been for this eventuality.