Mikel Arteta has learnt crucial title race lesson as Arsenal make important preparation

Arsenal’s 2022/23 campaign was hugely exciting for a number of reasons. The Gunners got off to a flying start, accumulating 50 points from their first 19 fixtures, a record that would have resulted in them equalling Manchester City’s centurion season if they duplicated their form in their next 19 outings.

Of course, it didn’t end up like that. Mikel Arteta's men finished on 84 points, five shy of City, who were the eventual champions. One of the reasons for their scintillating form during the first few months of the campaign was their fast starts.

In fact, they scored 14 times during the first 15 minutes of league matches last term. So far this season, they are yet to find the back of the net in the opening quarter of an hour.

Similarly, they had scored 29 goals in the opening 30 minutes of league games. This season it has been only four.

To some that may read concerning. What has gone wrong this season?

Why are the north Londoners slower off the mark? But for me, I think this is Arteta learning a valuable lesson from last season's title race.

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His young side tired in the final stretch of the season last time out. Perhaps partly due to the intensity they showcased during the opening stages of games, particularly before Christmas.

City, on the other hand, looked fresher than ever in the final months having been a tad inconsistent in the opening months. As Gary Neville pointed out, the Gunners collapsed in the final stretch.

«No one, not even me who thought City would win the league, would ever have imagined that in these games that Arsenal would have dropped these