A beating at the hands of Liverpool might just be the start of the end of what promised to be a successful season for the Gunners, one which would bring an end to their barren trophy less run. 24 matches into the season Wenger’s cavalry looked strong, the partnership of Per Mertesacker and Laurent Koscielny had not lost a single match for over a year and looked defiant to keep their record intact.
Within 20 minutes of their 25th league match of the season, the Arsenal side seemed a mere fraction of the team they had been all season long as the Reds steamrolled them scoring four goals in quick succession.
The damage could have been worse had the post not denied a brilliant attempt from Luis Suarez, a couple of smart saves from Wojciech Szczęsny and an ill fated attempt from Kolo Toure who could not score a goal with an empty goal to his mercy.
All in all the Gunners were thoroughly schooled in an encounter in which the home side was magnificently dominant. The aftermath of their loss is that the Gunners no longer occupy the pole position in the league table with Chelsea taking advantage of the misfortune of their London counterparts to leapfrog them for the first position.
And things might get even worse for the North London side with Arsenal set to lock horns with Manchester United within a space of four days and another meeting with Liverpool scheduled for the weekend as the Gunners prepare to face the Anfield side for the second time in a week this time in an FA Cup encounter. Wenger’s misery does not end here as a Champions League tie against European powerhouse and defending champions Bayern Munich awaits them next Wednesday.
All this implies that Arsenal could verily be knocked out of two cup competitions within a month’s time. Furthermore their league hopes could come crashing down with the North London side yet to play the likes of Tottenham, Chelsea, Manchester City and Everton. What makes it even worse is that fact that Arsenal will have to play the aforementioned clubs in consecutive league fixtures.
This is not the first time the month of February has proven to be all doom and gloom for Arsenal. It was the 2007/2008 season when Wenger’s side seemed destined to clinch the league title as they comfortably sat on top of the Premier League table. It was a fixture in the month of February against Birmingham which marked the beginning of bad things for Arsenal.
The event which marked it should be fresh in the minds of every Arsenal fan as well as any spectator who witnessed the match. A horrific tackle from Martin Taylor on Eduardo, resulted in a career threatening injury for the Croatian whose legs were left in tatters.
The Gunners failed to regroup themselves from then onwards with the match ending in a 2-2 draw and their next three Premier League games ending in draws. By that time Arsenal’s hope of ending their three year run without a trophy seemed very unlikely with the Gunners receiving a 4-0 thumping at the hands of Manchester United in the FA Cup to round off a disappointing end to a season which promised so much.
Since then the month of February has come to haunt Arsenal every now and then. Birmingham were once again present to destroy the Gunners’ party pulling of a shocking upset as they defeated Arsenal in the Carling Cup Final to deny the Gunners to bring an end to their trophy drought once again. Heavy defeats at the hands of AC Milan and Bayern Munich in the month of February resulted in the Gunners getting knocked out of the Champions League in consecutive seasons, in spite of heroic performances in reverse fixtures. Last year the Gunners were once again subjected to the ‘February curse’ Blackburn Rovers the architects of their dismissal from the FA Cup this time.
With a series of difficult fixtures to follow the Liverpool match, Wenger and his men need to stand up and face the music if they are to be considered as serious title contenders. With the likes of Chelsea and Man City unlikely to drop many points, the Gunners will have to be at their level best to have any chance of finishing the season on a strong note.
The February month can definitely be termed as the make or break month for the Gunners, if they succeed in surviving the month with their heads held high, Arsenal fans can definitely see their team bringing an end to a nine year trophy drought.
