But it’s not just a championship title that should reassure Merson in the long term. There are demonstrably two alternatives when it comes to winning a major trophy. The FA Cup would be one. Arsenal FC is already the record winner in the English cup competition, so it would almost be predestined for another triumph. A title in the Champions League would probably be far more important for the club. Arsenal have never been able to win the premier class. They only made it to the final once, in 2006, but lost to FC Barcelona.
The conditions for achieving the greatest possible triumph on the international stage this season, 20 years late, seem to be ideal. With five wins from five games and a goal difference of 14:1, Arsenal are currently doing well in the Champions League. It’s hard to imagine that the team will be held back on the way to the final in Budapest. But here too, a look at the past warns Arsenal to be cautious.
A year ago, at the same time, another team from England was leading the Champions League table without losing points: Liverpool FC. After the end of the group phase, the “Reds” were still at the top, having won seven games and only losing the final and ultimately insignificant group game against PSV Eindhoven. Liverpool went into the new year as the clear favorite to win the Champions League – and were promptly eliminated from the competition in the round of 16 against eventual champion Paris Saint-Germain. A fate that could also threaten Arsenal in the worst case scenario.