Arsenal were in the bottom half of the table in the first half of the season when they endured a difficult run, and they managed only two leagues wins in October and November.
The series of poor results put Mikel Arteta’s position under threat, but he was able to turn things around at the end of December. The Gunners have lost only three league matches in 2021.
Arteta saw his side seal a 2-1 win over Tottenham Hotspur in the north London derby last weekend and with that win, Arsenal are now sitting in 10th place with 41 points, trailing fourth place Chelsea by 10 points with a game in hand.
Bernd Leno has admitted a top four finish seems unlikely when giving his honest take on the Emirates club’s form this season.
“We are completely lacking the consistency. In autumn we had big problems, a bad atmosphere,” the goalkeeper told Kicker.
“…and we turned the corner. Now we’re at least getting a taste of the Europa League again. The Champions League will be very, very difficult.”
Having taken a 3-1 lead in the first [away] leg against Olympiacos, Arsenal are favourites to progress to the Europa League quarter-final.
They can qualify for next season’s Champions League by winning the second-tier European competition this term.
