I want to see 10 league games before making any more predictions.
Arsenal beat Everton 2-0 on Sunday but the second goal was offside and the Toffees outplayed them in the first half.
That match was mostly Petr Cech v Richarlison and, in truth, it was the 36-year-old keeper’s saves from the rangy Brazilian that earned Arsenal the points.
So Unai Emery has now won four games out of six and his next three are Watford, Fulham (away) and Leicester.
Watford are above Arsenal in the table and their coach Javi Garcia has picked the same starting eleven in every match so far and they were leading 1-0 from the 2nd minute to the 78th, when Aleksandar Mitrovic knocked in a tidy goal at the near post.
The bulky 24-year old Serb scored two headers when Fulham beat Burnley 4 -2 back in August and has already scored five Premier League goals in six games.
Two weeks ago Serbia drew 2-2 with Romania and Mitrovic claimed both goals for his national team.
Fulham v Arsenal is on Sunday October 7th and the positional play of the big Serb is crafty enough to test the Arsenal defence throughout that contest.
Arsenal v Leicester may also be an awkward fixture for Emery’s slowly-improving team to navigate.
Former Norwich star James Maddison is a creative player who might move up another level. And soon.
Maddison was excellent in Leicester’s 3-1 victory over Huddersfield and scored with a 25-yard free-kick that made it 2-1 in 56 minutes.
This year I’ve begun to edit a Best of ANR paperback.
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