It’s crunch time for Arsenal and their hopes of clinching the first part of a historic double. Victory against Burnley on Monday is absolutely essential as the Gunners look to tie up their first league title in 22 years.
That would pile the pressure on FA Cup winners Manchester City, who face a tough game at Champions League-chasing Bournemouth on Tuesday. The Gunners will then hope to celebrate winning the title at Crystal Palace on the final day before heading off to Budapest for the Champions League final against PSG.
The question of whether this current Gunners side will be remembered as ‘nearly men’ or club legends will be answered over the next fortnight. There is plenty of chatter behind the scenes about what lies ahead, regardless of whether they win two trophies, one or end up with nothing.
There will be arrivals and departures, with a host of players being linked with moves to the Emirates, while some long-serving stars could be heading for the exit door. Ahead of a crucial night for Mikel Arteta’s side, here’s a round-up of the latest Gunners news…
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Oliver Glasner has outlined his plans for Arsenal’s final-day showdown at Palace. Unless the Gunners beat Burnley and City fail to defeat Bournemouth, the title race will go to the final day.
While Arteta’s side would have it all to play for, the Eagles will have their mind on the Europa Conference League final against Rayo Vallecano in Leipzig on May 27. That has led to suggestions, mainly from City fans, that Glasner will name a weakened side.
The Austrian has addressed the situation by insisting he won’t rotate “a lot.” However, he has confirmed that key players could be brought off earlier than usual, perhaps as early as half-time.
He said: “Yes, we will maybe make more and earlier substitutions, maybe after 60, 70 minutes latest, maybe one or two at half-time if that’s possible, but everything else we won’t do.”
Rodri has had a late stab at mind games ahead of both sides’ final pair of games. City have become masters at getting over the line in title run-ins, while the Gunners have made a habit of falling away when the pressure mounts.
Speaking after helping City win the FA Cup on Saturday, Rodri attempted to apply pressure by talking up the possibility of the Gunners slipping up again. He said: “Everything can happen. We need them to drop points, which could happen in the next game or the last one. If I was in their position, it’s not easy to finish the task. We have to be there pushing until the end.”
View 2 ImagesRodri has attempted to heap pressure on Arsenal(Image: Sebastian Frej/Getty Images)
Asked if he believes Arsenal will drop points, Rodri replied: “I mean, from our experience, we were losing the title [to Liverpool] against Aston Villa at our home in minute 80 [in 2022].
“So everything can happen in football. We know how difficult it is to close things and we know how difficult it is to beat everyone in this Premier League.”
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