A weak defence means Arsenal again don't look anywhere close to being title challengers

At the end of every season, the Arsenal fan base gets split into two groups: A disgruntled lot who call for the head of manager Arsene Wenger and the ones who are grateful to the Frenchman for consistently keeping them in the top four for 20 straight seasons.

The bone of contention here has been the league title. It has been 12 years since the Gunners faithful last had a taste of it – in the 2003-'04 season. It was also the year where the near unstoppable force of Thierry Henry, Dennis Bergkamp, Patrick Vieira, Robert Pires and Co saw through an entire season without a defeat.

Since then, there have been seasons where the London giants showed promise (2007-'08, 2015-'16), looking good at one stage to win the title. But they were separated by years of frustration. For the average Arsenal fan, it seems as though the heights of 2004 somehow became the side's Achilles heel. Apart from being the last memory of a dominant Arsenal team, the tactical nous shown by Wenger, combined with that side’s ability to dig deep and get results, a benchmark for the years that followed.

Even to this day, Premier League winners are measured by the consistency of Alex Ferguson's Manchester United or the flair Wenger’s class of ’04. With the division getting stronger, no team has been able to sustain those teams’ style of football or consistency. Nowadays, a league win is largely determined by how good a start a team can get off to. Arsenal have had quite a few of them over the years.

Coming back to fan support, there were more “Wenger Out” banners at the Emirates Stadium than ever before by the end of last season. Previously, the 66-year-old had observed that the financial clout of the Manchester clubs and Chelsea would demote the rest of the bunch to a top four dogfight. Leicester City’s incredible title win last year made a mockery of Wenger's claim.

Signings – the good, bad, and the ugly

The three-time Premier League-winning manager has definitely adapted himself somewhat to the vagaries of modern day transfer business. It is, after all, the year where England could regain possession of the transfer world record through Paul Pogba’s impending £110 million move to Manchester United. Over the last two summers, Arsenal has recruited a couple of world class names in German World Cup winner Mesut Ozil and Chilean lynchpin Alexis Sanchez. The latter cost £31 million, while the former Real Madrid playmaker was signed on for a club record £42 million.

The trend has continued and Granit Xhaka, signed for a steep fee of £35 million, is a welcome addition to the setup. The Swiss midfielder is a bundle of energy and is equally adept in defence and attack, along the lines of Bayern Munich’s Arturo Vidal. However, the signing also creates a selection headache in the middle of the park.

Tactics

Playing a 4-2-3-1, two of the three spots behind the striker are taken by Ozil in the centre and Sanchez on the left. Theo Walcott and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain will battle it out for a place on the right flank. At the base of the midfield, a fully fit Francis Coquelin should be an automatic starter as the enforcer. With the injury-plagued Jack Wilshere also back in the fray, there is a plethora of options to chose from. Xhaka, Wilshere, Santi Cazorla, Mohamed Elneny and Aaron Ramsey will have to fight it out for that one spot alone.

Goals have been a problem against certain teams for Arsenal. The problem yet again came to light last season with their failure to break down compact, well organised sides who don’t leave any space between the lines. Going into the season depending on Olivier Giroud and Danny Welbeck alone as the frontmen backfired badly. With time running out in the transfer window, 2014-'15 Ligue 1 top scorer Alexandre Lacazette, heavily linked with the club, may open up more options. After all, the side needs a man who can beat the last line of defence. More importantly, they need a striker who can net 25 or more goals a season.

Wenger’s task ahead

With all the usual suspects underperforming in the league, Wenger missed the best chance to win the title last season. Ramsey heads into the best years of his career and comes into the season after a superb Euro 2016 with Wales. The 25-year-old’s best position lies deep in midfield, which can exploit his natural goal-scoring instincts from a counter-attack. After being snubbed by England for the Euros, it is also a crucial year for Theo Walcott. Welbeck, however tactically flexible, needs to prove his mettle as a goal-scorer first and foremost.

Defence is an area that has still not been properly addressed so far. A seasoned campaigner like Per Mertersacker will be out for six months with injury. Brazil's Gabriel impressed in first season, but is injury-prone too. A good goalkeeper wins his team at least 12-15 points a season and makes an impact on the side's position in the table at the end of the season: Ask Manchester United and David de Gea about it. This is where Petr Cech's experience will hold the key.

The battle with other managers

Even back-to-back FA Cup wins couldn’t satisfy a vast number of Gooners. If Wenger had it tough in the years gone by, his task of getting the league title back to North London just got even more daunting with Antonio Conte and Pep Guardiola managing teams in the division. There is plenty of hype surrounding this season in England being a survival-of-the-fittest battle among the crème de la crème of managers. Jose Mourinho, Conte and Guardiola top the list. Wenger has fallen comfortably short of the current United manager in previous meetings. Even though he has a better record against Guardiola – winning two games – it is an uphill battle for Le Professeur to emerge as the king of this elite brand.

Prediction: Third

Wenger has worked well to polish and enhance the spine of the team, but it is his defence that he should be worried about. It's difficult to see the current Arsenal side challenging for the title.