Monday Cannon Fodder: predictions

Over the weekend, some pundit quipped on Twitter whether any club wanted to finish fourth given the recent rash of dropped points by the clubs in third to eighth. One of the top responses was that Arsenal seemed to want to come fourth. The Gunners have won 7 of their last 9 in the Premier League, drawing Burnley and losing to Manchester City.

That run of form has Mikel Arteta’s side tied for fifth on 45 points with three games in hand over West Ham (45) and two over Manchester United in fourth on 47 points. Chelsea are in third on 50 points, and the Gunners have a game in hand over them, too.

Arsenal’s matches to be rescheduled are against Liverpool, Chelsea, and Spurs, so not the easiest run of matches. But when the season is finished every club will have played every other club twice, so in a sense, it doesn’t really matter when those matches actually take place. If this season of rescheduled games has taught us anything, it’s that the table is volatile and not to take much stock in how it looks at any discrete time.

That said, the Gunners are seven points better this season over the corresponding fixtures from last season, so maybe, just maybe Arsenal’s place in the table isn’t as illusory as that devil on our shoulder would like us to think. I’m on the record that I believe in this bunch and that I think they’ll qualify for the Champions League.

What do you think? Arsenal have 14 Premier League matches left this season. Will the club finish fourth or better? What might trip them up?