By Tony Attwood
So now it seems we have a top seven, or perhaps we might even say a big seven. For the gap between the top clubs are the rest comes after number seven – Nottingham Forest – although to be fair they are a bit on the edge of the group And then after that we have the lost two.
1
Liverpool
36
25
8
3
83
37
46
83
**2**
**Arsenal**
**36**
**18**
**14**
**4**
**66**
**33**
**33**
**68**
3
Newcastle United
36
20
6
10
68
45
23
66
4
Chelsea
37
19
9
9
63
43
20
66
5
Aston Villa
37
19
9
9
58
49
9
66
6
Manchester City
36
19
8
9
67
43
24
65
7
Nottingham Forest
36
18
8
10
56
44
12
62
8
Brentford
36
16
7
13
63
53
10
55
**16**
**Manchester United**
**37**
**10**
**9**
**18**
**42**
**54**
**\-12**
**39**
**17**
**Tottenham Hotspur**
**37**
**11**
**5**
**21**
**63**
**61**
**2**
**38**
Now of course to be fair, and we do like to be fair here, those lost two are not in danger of going down, because these days the Premier League relies pretty much on the three that come up to go down again, so there is no doubt about relegation any more. So that means Leeds United and Burnely return next season to the Premier League for one campaign, probably along with Sheffield United, but for that final place, we have to wait and see.
And if we note when those three clubs last graced (I use the word lightly) the Premier League it was last season for Sheffield United and Burnley, and 2022/23 for Leeds. So nothing much changes except at reborn Wrexham under its American owners Rob McElheney, Ryan Reynolds, who won the National League in 2022/23, came second in League Two in 2023/24 and this season came second in League One.
But back to our concerns, a win for Arsenal will give the club 71 points. which only Newcastle could overtake. ManC could equal that but with a considerably worse goal difference. So technically both clubs could rise above Arsenal (although it seems very unlikely) but a win for Arsenal leaves them finishing in second, third or fourth. The game is tomorrow at 4.30pm.
The defeats yesterday of Manchester Un by Chelsea and Tottenham Hots by Aston Villa do however confirm the extraordinary decline in these clubs and shows just how much clubs can fall when they seem to rely on their reputation and past rather than focus on what they should be doing now.
And perhaps it should remind us not to be too hasty in judging a season. For on 3 November 2024 the table read
1
Liverpool
10
8
1
1
19
6
13
25
2
Manchester City
10
7
2
1
21
11
10
23
3
Nottingham Forest
10
5
4
1
14
7
7
19
4
Chelsea
10
5
3
2
20
12
8
18
**5**
**Arsenal**
**10**
**5**
**3**
**2**
**17**
**11**
**6**
**18**
6
Aston Villa
10
5
3
2
17
15
2
18
**7**
**Tottenham Hotspur**
**10**
**5**
**1**
**4**
**22**
**11**
**11**
**16**
Of course we don’t know for sure how it will all finish, but as things stand Manchester City are six places lower than they were, Nottingham Forest are four places lower, Chelsea have stayed where they were after ten games, Arsenal are three places higher, Aston Villa are down one, and Tottenham are down ten.
So maybe reading too much into the table after ten games isn’t always a good idea.
Anyway, this weekend’s game does mean a lot in terms of securing second place, and so the news that Kai Havertz could play and is looking to be very fit and in superb form, is rather good news. That forward line of Saka, Havertz and Martinelli, with all of them on form must scare the hell out of most defences and means our midfield attackers can move forward with safety.
Mikel Arteta made a few comments about the return of Havertz including saying, “There’s been a transformation in his body. The last three years in his career have been so condensed that he hasn’t had time to do that and this has been a window and he really wanted to use it. The staff explained the opportunity that is within his physique to go to a different level. He got on board with that.
“You can see his presence and I think he destroyed all the metrics that we had in the gym for the last 10 years. All of them. Power, acceleration, muscle mass, the way that he has increased certain capacities in his body, his agility, he’s been incredible… “
Arteta also added that the way Havertz has trained has been an inspiration to everyone else – so maybe something good will come out of an injury which came, if you remember, just when Martinelli and Saka were also injured, leaving us wondering who might score the goals.
And let us not forget that it is still possible that Arsenal could end up with the second highest number of goals scored this season, as well as almost certainly having the best defence in the league this campaign which would be an amazing achievement.
And curiously that latter point is not one that I have seen mentioned much if at all in the media during the season for some reason I wonder why, as it seems to me of some importance.