Arsenal Takes Advantage Over Tottenham Hotspur In Fight For Champions League Qualification

A couple of weeks is a long time in soccer.

On April 9, Tottenham Hotspur put in an impressive performance to win 4-0 at Aston Villa. It was the club’s fourth win in a row and the team could not stop scoring. Those four wins brought 14 goals.

Most importantly, it gave Spurs a three-point lead in fourth – the Premier League’s final place for Champions League qualification – ahead of rival Arsenal.

The Gunners, favorites for that crucial fourth place-finish earlier in the season, were seemingly on a downward spiral. The team lost at home to Brighton the same day Spurs was thrashing Villa. Last weekend, Arsenal lost its third match in a row, at Southampton.

But Spurs also lost last weekend (at home to Brighton) and, yesterday, could only draw 0-0 at Brentford. Arsenal, meanwhile, has had a dream week. It surprisingly won 4-2 at Chelsea on Wednesday before beating Manchester United 3-1 yesterday.

The table has turned again and it is Arsenal now sitting fourth, with a two-point lead.

Arsenal favorite after winning week

With five matches left of the season, Arsenal is now favorite for that final Champions League place. It has apparently found form at the right time and successfully navigated some of the more difficult-looking matches in its run-in.

The Spurs vs. Arsenal match, on May 12, will likely still be key, but there is a lot more soccer to be played and a lot more opportunity for twists and turns.

Arsenal’s next match, away at West Ham next Sunday, looks, on paper, its hardest other than the derby against Spurs. The match, though, comes between West Ham’s first and second leg matches against Eintracht Frankfurt in the semi-final of the Europa League.

West Ham has never won the competition and these are two huge matches for the club. The East Londoners also have an injury crisis in defence. With injuries and suspensions, West Ham could have four center-backs unavailable for the Arsenal match. It is fair to say West Ham will likely prioritize the European matches over the league clash with Arsenal.

A trip to resurgent Newcastle is Arsenal’s penultimate match and it finishes the season at home to struggling Everton, which may need a result to avoid relegation. Not easy fixtures, but after the past week these are matches Arsenal will be confident of winning, or at least not losing.

Spurs must rediscover scoring touch

Spurs’ run-in was seen as kinder but now, after consecutive disappointing results, the pressure is on and it will probably need to beat Arsenal on May 12.

Other than that, the fixture that looms large is the trip to Anfield to play Liverpool on May 7. Liverpool is aiming for an historic quadruple in its battle with Manchester City and probably needs to win all its remaining matches to have a chance of winning the league title. Spurs has a poor recent record at Anfield, last winning there in 2011.

The home fixture with Burnley, on May 15, could also prove tricky with the Clarets in good form and fighting to avoid relegation.

Regardless of the remaining matches, the big concern for Spurs is the team’s performance in the past two matches. After such a free-scoring run (Spurs’ goal difference is +18 compared to +12 for Arsenal), Spurs failed to register a single shot on target in the defeat to Brighton and draw with Brentford.

Manager Antonio Conte must find a way to get his team firing again in the final month of the season. If he can, Spurs can go into the match with Arsenal with a real chance of claiming fourth with a win.

It is currently advantage Arsenal in what seems a two-way fight for fourth between the two big rivals. The biggest surprise, though, would be if this is the final twist in the fight.