Theo Walcott is still confident that Arsenal can fulfil his dreams and finish in the top 4 in the Premier League table this season. After a torrid start to the season, which culminated in an 8-2 thrashing by Manchester United, Arsenal have finally started to look like a football team that can challenge for the major honours. They currently lie in 6th in the table, but Walcott believes it’s just a matter of time before they find their way back into the top four, and maybe even higher!
Speaking after the Norwich game, which Arsenal won convincingly, Theo was in a confident mood. “We’ve said all season that the aim is to finish the League in one of the top four spots and qualify for the Champions League. We may have started poorly but it’s a long run in, like a marathon, and I’m confident that by the end of the race we can achieve that top 4 finish.”
Arsenal have some tough matches coming up, with Manchester City and Liverpool both due to play the Gunners over the next few weeks. When you couple that with the last two group stage matches of the Champions League (which are both must-win matches for Arsenal) you start to wonder whether Arsenal have the squad to cope with the pressures of playing at the very top – not many punters will be tempted to bet on Arsenal winning all those games…?
Arsenal’s chances depend heavily upon whether Robin van Persie is fit, according to Betfair’s ‘Lee Dixon Bets’ column. Van Persie has been in scintillating form alongside Theo, scoring an impressive 13 league goals so far this season, and over 35 in this calendar year. With him in the side the Gunners somehow manage to find another dimension, but without him they seem to lack the verve, flair and confidence needed to break down their opponents.
Van Persie sat out the match against Norwich, but should be back for the Dortmund match in midweek. With him and Walcott linking up well so far this season, if they can keep the pair of them fit, Arsenal might just have a chance…
