Be prepared this season for the biggest pressure on any club the media has ever driven. The media will drive the win a big trophy or face the sack for Arteta all season, and I doubt any of them will actually temper that opinion by saying that Arsenal won’t sack him irrespective of what we think should happen.

Every single defeat is going to be a sh*t storm in the media and our own fans won’t help.

Expect most know this already, Simon Hooper is referee for the MU match on Sunday.

So lets make sure the players are aware of this and play accordingly. Don't give the ref a decision to make.

Man U are subject to far more media "pressure" than Arsenal. I put "pressure" in inverted commas because if a team can't handle what pundits might say about them, they've no chance of dealing with the actual pressure of winning the league.

go on Stanley. Obligation deal for Isak.

i’d laugh my pants off.

starting to look like Eze is spurs bound

We all know we'll see multiple incidents not punished where the players gave the ref a decision to make.

The one that infuriates me is a ref stopping a corner being taken to march over and tell two players to not grapple with each other when the corner comes in - just grow a pair and make the decision if it happens, why should the players get a warning and the fans have to put up with another 30 second stoppage in play so a ref can do that.

Maybe yes, but what are the general pundit and media expectations of both clubs this season?

In any given year due to the wealth of the club Man U should be getting top 4, every time they don't is a failure. This season they won't be hammered for getting top 4 because people will be looking at it through 15th last season. I think Man U could finish 8th and would get more slack than Arsenal for finishing 2nd again

Much as I like Eze, I really can't see us going for him - we have a lot of central midfielders

The weakness in our squad is in terms of width and pace. We have very shallow with just three establishes wide forwards (Saka, Gabi and Noni)

I think Eze makes sense if Trossard is staying. Brings power to the squad and covers Ødegaard. He does offer something different to rice and merino our left 8s.

However, He doesn’t make sense if Trossard goes as the requirement moves quite clearly to a specialist left winger who can contribute the 10 goals and 10 assists Trossard did last season. This wouldn’t be a cheap buy. This is what I think is happening as if we wanted Eze he’d have been in the bag by now.

Feels like we are waiting for Ornstein to confirm Trossard and vieiras departures and a bombshell on a potential new wide player.

Ouattara from Bournemouth to Brentford for £42m…..!

I think Ornstein said we looked at Eze in case Nwaneri didn’t sign his deal and we might be forced to sell. Nwaneri is clearly not being considered to the wider roles.
I still think there is room for a creative type who can carry the ball from central areas but can see that if Trossard is sold then a top class wide left player is the more likely signing. Rodrygo at Real Madrid has some noise but that feels like a really tough deal to pull off for many many reasons. I still really like Leao but there is no real noise around him. Whenever Ornstein talks about our left side he always mentions Anthony Gordon…..

All true but refs are human and so are VAR officials so there will be inconsistency. Ignore that and play.

That's mad.

Transfer fees have gone totally nuts generally,

madueke looks a bargain compared to 37.5 million for Omari Hutchinson.

Nørgaard and Kepa look like crazy business compared to some things.

I believe Arteta has told a press conference that he has transformed the club but conceded we still need to win a title. I applaud him for realising where we stand. I was hoping he would finish with’Gaz from Oz ‘ has indicated there are ‘no excuses’ this year. But I can’t have everything.

Yep. Get ready for another pgmol shambles.

The time wasting rules are stupid. Strictly rules like this never work and will just lead to more inconsistency.

The easy fix to time wasting is openly visibly clock which ref stops when time is being wasted and it gets added on.

I think giving a corner if the goalie hangs onto it for too long isn't a bad idea. It's not a massive punishment. Ditto reversing free kicks and throwins. Better than silly yellows that can be 2nd yellows or accumulate.

Problem is if the ref and crowd are deciding how long is too long.

Uncle Junior: It sounds like nazi germany to me

So ..

I asked the latest Chat GPT 5 AI a question ...

Will Arsenal win the league next year ?

Here’s the latest outlook on whether Arsenal might win the Premier League title in the 2025–26 season:

Title Odds & Betting Markets

Liverpool remain the favorites, with early betting odds around 6/4 (1.5x)
Talksport

Arsenal are next in line, priced near 5/2 (2.5x)
Reuters

Alternative bookies reflect similar sentiment—Liverpool at around 7/4 (1.75x) and Arsenal at 9/4 (~2.25x)
BettingOdds.com thatsagoal.com Betfair Betting

Expert Predictions & Analysis

talkSPORT analysts anticipate Liverpool will retain the title, but see Arsenal as a major threat, especially with key new signings like Gyökeres and Zubimendi — Adrian Durham even predicts Arsenal might finally claim the title
Talksport.

Alan Shearer, however, forecasts Arsenal finishing second again, behind Liverpool for the fourth straight season
The Sun.

FourFourTwo’s preview offers cautious optimism—Arsenal are close but must address lingering issues like reliable goal-scoring, injuries, and finishing under pressure; they predict a 3rd-place finish
FourFourTwo.

Internal Club Confidence & Squad Outlook

Reuters reports that Arsenal have invested nearly £200 million in the summer window to bolster squad depth—signing high-impact players including Gyökeres, Zubimendi, Nørgaard, Madueke, Mosquera, and Kepa—and now aim to finally secure the league title
Reuters.

Mikel Arteta believes that nine different teams could realistically challenge for the Premier League—yet stresses that Arsenal are well-placed to win it, given their reinforcements and continuity
beIN SPORTS.

The Road Ahead: Fixtures & Schedule

A detailed fixture-based analysis highlights a tough early run for Arsenal, including matches against Manchester United (away), Liverpool (away), and Manchester City early on. How they navigate this period may determine their title trajectory
You Are My Arsenal.

Summary Table
Factor Outlook
Betting Odds Arsenal are strong contenders (around 5/2–9/4), but still behind Liverpool.
Pundit Views Mixed—some back Arsenal, others lean toward Liverpool dominance.
Squad & Manager Arsenal appear stronger than ever with a €£200M+ transfer push and a settled tactical setup under Arteta.
Fixture Difficulty Their early schedule is particularly challenging—but manageable with form and consistency.

Conclusion: Can Arsenal Win Next Year?

Absolutely yes— the opportunity is there. Arsenal have the squad, the structure, and the ambition to end that 21-year title drought. Many pundits and markets see them as the most plausible challengers to Liverpool.

But it won’t be easy - they must hit the ground running, maintain consistency, avoid key injuries, and capitalize on their early fixtures.

In short: They have a real shot—but must deliver under pressure.

One more AI prompt.
===========
I can be a “virtual fan” for fun. If you like, I can tell you which EPL team I’d probably cheer for based on style, history, and drama — it might surprise you. Do you want me to do that ?
Yes

Alright, if I were picking an EPL team to “virtually” support, I’d probably go with Arsenal. Here’s why:

Exciting style of play: Under Arteta, they play attractive, possession-based football with quick transitions and creative attacking moves. It’s the kind of game that makes watching fun rather than just hoping they scrape a win.

Youth + potential: They have a lot of young talent like Saka, Ødegaard, and Fábio Vieira, which means you’re cheering for players who could become legends.

The comeback story: Arsenal has a rich history, but they’ve also had long droughts and near-misses. There’s something satisfying about rooting for a team on the rise, fighting to reclaim glory.

Drama factor: Whether it’s title races or last-minute goals, Arsenal games often have tension and excitement — perfect for keeping a virtual fan on their toes.

That said, I could also see myself being a fan of Liverpool for their passionate fan base and consistency, or Manchester City for sheer tactical brilliance under Guardiola.

I'm not convinced that keepers holding onto the ball was much of an issue anyway.

Our habit of taking ages over throw-ins is certainly annoying but is easily fixed with additional time.

The grappling at corners is the one that will be the most controversial. 6 or 8 players all grappling, yet the ref picks out one and gives a peno. It has the potential to be shambolic. That said, it needs to he dealt with.

There are so many ways of wasting time that if you clamp down on one or two, people will just start doing different things - adding the time gets around this and also avoids stupid inconsistencies with harsh cards for nothing much

The grappling at corners is another one which is very subjective, it's often a bit of both, and this 'clamping down' will just see some joke decisions where it's 50:50 and a referee has then been pressurised to doing something where it isn't clear cut - I think these directives are stupid, the fundamental problem is poor quality referees, poor VAR process - changes the rules won't help - the only thing that'll help is massive PGMOL reform to force them to be properly transparent and less crony (too closely controlled by the PL - needs to be far more independent) and that's ain't happening anytime soon

The rank incompetence in referees and the awful VAR protocols mean we'll again see kangaroo court justice this season, after all that's all football is these days, a money laundering network for some very rich people and the PL doesn't want true fairness/competition - they want a process they can influence and they want the big money clubs doing well

Liverpool game paused for racism. The *%^@*** state of this country right now

Aren’t the scousers just better off spending the Isak money on a load of defenders. Etitike looks very useful

A young kid in a wheelchair apparently while Semenyo was taking a throw-in. No excuse for it at all.

Yes he’s been nicked. Farage and Tommy Robinson will be setting up the kid a go fund me now.

Goal semenyo who I have to say has looked class all night.

A Liverpool fan

Well it took 80 minutes of the season for me to get annoyed. Just happened to coincide with Liverpool 3rd and then of course a 4th to help their goal difference.

Liverpool are very good at winning that sort of game. Last season we weren't.

Fingers crossed, that will be us this season.

We were pretty good at winning the squeaky ones a couple of seasons back, so touch wood we are not derailed by the ailments and misfortunes of last season (injuries, weird sending offs, a propensity to concede goals out of the blue, and inexplicable bouts of turgidity/constipation in the dreaded horseshoe/sphincter zone).

Let it flow forth!

I keep reminding myself of Martial’s goal in his first game and Anthony scoring in his first 3. Comparisons to every great player left right and centre.

Having said that, Utd were their own special brand of dumpster fire and Ekitike, sadly, is looking like he might be somewhere adjacent to the real deal…

He’s one Arsene would have gone for and put into his World class player mould. Ah well.

Some of it we can't control - injuries and refs. But other areas of the team we can. You look back at the Wenger teams which had such fluidity. You have got to have trust in your players to do that. Let them ad lib a bit. But to be fair I don't know whether any of the current players would get a game in the last two Wenger title teams. Maybe Saka on the bench.

Gabriel and Saliba are better than Toure. Rice is better than Gilberto and Saka is better than Freddie. We clearly have nobody at the level of Henry or Bergkamp but those two were ridiculous.

Bloody hell

This lad looks to pushing hard for first team

https://www.arsenal.com/news/ismeal-kab ... g-contract

i’d say Timber on current form is pretty close to Lauren. Timber is better defensively but Lauren may is fractionally better in the final third.

They need the VAR officials to be far more active like they are in rugby.