After the last week, Arsenal only have to face Chelsea at home before a relatively easier run of fixtures in the Premier league comes by before a very difficult February and March. As a result, I felt it was time to look at our two main title contenders top 6 fixtures for the second half of the season.
Manchester City.
They still have to face Liverpool at home before having to face the second round of the big 6 fixtures during the second half of the season. This is how they look:
Wed 29th Jan Tottenham (A)
Mon 3rd Feb Chelsea (H)
Sat 1st Mar Manchester Utd (A)
Sat 29th Mar Arsenal (A)
Sat 12th Apr Liverpool (A)
Sat 3rd May Everton (A)
As you can see, their big fixtures are well spread out and they have enough time between each one to build momentum against smaller teams if they falter against one of the bigger teams. However, the most important thing is, 5 of the 6 big fixtures are away from home. That is massive considering their dodgy away form at the moment. And their only home game is against arguably the most defensive of the top 6 which could also make life difficult for them.
Chelsea.
They still have us to play at the Emirates as well as a visit from Liverpool at Stamford Bridge before the second half of their season starts. Their big fixtures are:
Sun 19th Jan Manchester Utd (H)
Mon 3rd Feb Manchester City (A)
Sat 22nd Feb Everton (H)
Sat 8th Mar Tottenham (H)
Sat 22nd Mar Arsenal (H)
Sat 26th Apr Liverpool (A)
Chelsea have faced most of their big games away from home and will need to make the Bridge a fortress to ensure they win the title. I can see them claiming the majority of points from these fixtures which isn’t a great sign for Arsenal. Again, they have a well spread out fixture list involving the big teams. However, involvement in the Champions league further on in the competition may be detrimental.
My next article will look at Arsenal’s fixtures against the big 6 during the second half of the season with in depth analysis on how other fixtures may influence the result and how certain games being home and away can be of an advantage to us.
