As It Stands

RK		TEAM	P	W	D	L	GS	GA		W	D	L	GS	GA		W	D	L	GS	GA		GD	Pts
1		Chelsea	12	10	0	2	29	8		6	0	0	16	1		4	0	2	13	7		21	30
2		Arsenal	11	8	1	2	36	14		5	0	0	20	4		3	1	2	16	10		22	25
3		Man United	12	8	1	3	23	12		5	1	0	13	7		3	0	3	10	5		11	25
4		Tottenham	12	7	1	4	23	17		4	0	2	12	6		3	1	2	11	11		6	22
5		Aston Villa	12	6	3	3	20	12		4	1	1	12	5		2	2	2	8	7		8	21
6		Man City	11	5	5	1	21	14		3	2	0	13	8		2	3	1	8	6		7	20

With 1/3 of the Premier League already past us, Arsenal are now in 2nd place, 5 points behind Chelsea having played 1 game less than the current leaders. I know that it is too early in the season to be looking at the table but at this point, the current standings give more than just an indication of things to come.

With the exception of Sheikh City, the others have lost a minimum of 2 matches already. The Sheikhs themselves although has only 1 defeat to their name, have drawn in 5 matches. So, despite the big investment, they have not done particularly well and their form seemed to have – ever since the Manchester derby defeat. Following a bad start, Villa has suddenly sprung together a string of wins and are sitting comfortably in 5th spot. They’ve blown hot and cold this season and by the looks of it, will continue in the same fashion. Sp*rs are jut Sp*rs and will soon come to realise that they are never going to challenge for the Champions League spot.

United have lost their edge ever since they let Ronaldo leave for Madrid and it really showed against the likes of Burnley and other smaller clubs where they found it hard to make the breakthrough. In season’s past, Ronaldo made it his favourite past time to ripped apart these kind of clubs. Other than Arsenal, Chelsea are the only ones who did not seem to take any steps backwards this season compared to last. Consistently consistent is the right word but was also given a shock by the lower club in the shape of Wigan.

So that leaves us right behind the top. Up to this point, we have done tremendously well. 2 defeats both came in Manchester and the dropped points at Upton Park now looking slightly costly. We do have a game in hand which could theoretically put us just 2 points behind Chelsea. Which also means how important the 29th Nov clash is. Provided the lads maintain their good form, we could be leading the league at the end of this match. The match is also important as Arsenal have already faltered to teams in direct competition with us and will need to show that they can also win against other big boys.

Our goals for column is pretty amazing. An average of 3 goals a game (4 if you count only the home games). The best thing about that statistic is the fact that the goals are distributed throughout the whole team without being entirely dependant on any single individuals. Obviously Van Persie and Fabregas are leading the scoring chart but the likes of Diaby, Vermaelen and Gallas have also put in their share of contributions.

As good as the goals for column looks, it is that bad for the goals against column. Out of the current top 6 (Sp*rs excluded, as they always are), together with the Sheikhs, Arsenal have conceded the most number of goals. This is a very alarming fact. Yes, majority of those come in games when we’ve already won the tie but this may end up to haunt us at the end of May. Something needs to be done. Concentration levels must be increased. The awareness of the team must be drummed in by Wenger and his coaching staff. In football you can’t switch off until the final whistle.

What is most pleasing is the fact that we have a 6-0-0 record at home. It’s been a very long time since we have a fortress as a home stadium. This may finally be the year in which the memory of Highbury is replaced by Ashburton Grove. If we continue in the same vein, there’s no denying that we will be challenging for honours once again.