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Man Utd were the devils Yes, it has happened before. We were well behind Manchester United in 2000/01 and they had kept us second 3 years in a row. 2001/02 was nothing to look forward too. The previous year we had let go Marc Overmars and Emmanuel Petitt to Barcelona and they seemed a huge loss. We had also let go Davor Suker who, for the benefit of those who are unaware, was regarded as a great buy as he came from Real Madrid and was an established goalscorer but could not replace the guys in front of him in Bergkamp, Henry and Kanu, however he was definitely above Gyokeres and Sesko in current stature, and possibly Isak who are our seeming targets this season. Until players come to the Premier League we can never say they will work out. Even if they come from Real Madrid. Even Suker couldn't make it at Arsenal So, what happened in 2000/01? Sort of similar to this year. We were 10 points behind Utd at the end and possibly a bit more than that behind Liverpool this year. We had 70 points as opposed to 74 if we beat Southampton on Sunday. We were beaten 8 times and drew 10 as opposed to 4 losses and 14 draws (depending on Southampton). We got to the quarter final of the Champions league being beaten by Valencia on away goals. We did much better this season winning out in a much tougher group stage in joint second along with Barcelona and Inter, who also made it to the semi-finals alongside us. We destroyed various teams along the way including beating Real Madrid home and away. In contrast in 2000/01 we played two group stages without any standout wins. So we were better in the league and the Champions League this year. Owen the heartbreaker And in the two domestic cups we had mixed fortunes, in 2000/01 we got to the FA Cup final where we played Liverpool and Michael Owen broke our hearts with a very late goal with Arsenal being the better team. Some sort of parallel with this year as Liverpool won the league without being outstanding a lot of the time. They were very dogged, winning games late and putting away the lower teams. Beaten by Liverpool to a trophy is a characteristic both times. Michael Owen the heartbreaker In the League Cup we went out in the 3rd round to Ipswich whereas we did much better this term, getting to the semis before being beaten by Newcastle. Overall so we did better in the FA Cup and worse in the League Cup in 2000/01. We were worse in 2000/01 than now I think it is fair to say that we were worse overall in 2000/01 than this season. The only trophy in which we did better was the FA Cup. Will Gyokeres be the answer? And then what happened in 2001/2002? We won the double! Can we do it again? Well, let’s look at what was better in that season. Here, we have to look at the past season where we brought in Robert Pires, Lauren, Edu and Sylvain Wiltord as important buys. Pires and Wiltord did well without setting the world alight and Edu and Lauren were bit players particularly Edu. All of those, but to a lesser extent, Edu, became critical players in 2001/02. This season, Raya signed and continued his good work from last year. Calafiori did not set the world alight but can he blossom next season? Mikel Merino also had apatchy first season but will he shoot for the stars? Lewis-Skelly has been phenomenal and Ethan Nwaneri superb when he has played. Havertz still feels like a new player to me, so can this be his breakout year? That will be critical, I feel. If the team gels like they did in 2001/02 then we can hit the heights. We used to have the greatest striker in the world now do we even have any? "I saw something today I never saw last season – we played as a team. It's the most important thing in football." — Thierry Henry's reaction following our first game against Middlesbrough in which we won 4-0. Our most serious defect And despite our good defensive record this season we were susceptible to quick breakaways in which our team did not cover properly. We do need to work on stopping this problem and that has to be a whole team effort. That cost us against PSG and Newcastle and in various games against weaker teams this season. We must play better as a team and the fact that we had lots of changes in personnel mitigated against that. A more settled side with the newer players gelling better and I feel we can be unstoppable. Sol Campbell - anyone remember who he used to play for? So who did we buy in in 2001/02? One was the biggest surprise ever, Sol Campbell, who came from nowhere, or sorry, some small team, I can’t remember the name, and shocked us all. England’s best defender had come just as the George Graham magic defence had finally disappeared. Plus Kolo Toure who was to provide a great partnership with Campbell alongside Ashley Cole and Lauren. Who needs George Graham? By the way, that defence gives the lie to the myth that Arsene Wenger couldn’t put together a defence. Those four would be among the best defences we ever had. Buying a top striker didn’t work We also brought in Giovanni von Bronkhorst from Rangers, a gifted midfielder who looked like a solid buy, and Richard Wright as cover for David Seaman. But the clincher was Franny Jeffers from Everton, a striker who burst on the scene at 16, and was expected to be the missing piece in the striking department, someone who would mop up all the chances we created. It wasn’t to be. Neither player hit the heights expected, particularly Jeffers, whose career went downhill. Injuries led to loss of form and he was never the golden boy again. Franny Jeffers - no fox in the box for us Could Arteta do the same again? Buy 2 defenders, a midfielder and a striker and it is the defenders who go on to become Arsenal greats? It seems unlikely. In defence now we have top players all vying for limited spots whereas the George Graham defence had to be replaced. Winterburn was already gone and Adams and Dixon had restricted appearances with only Martin Keown getting quite a few games. Jeffers was coming into Bergkamp, Henry, Kanu and Wiltord, with Pires and Ljungberg also capable of playing a forward role. We would expect a top forward, if one comes, to get in the side and start hoovering up chances. A double would be like double ice-cream. Havertz could yet surprise us, though. At 25, he is still young. We may get Gyokeres as reported this week and he may not be the answer. Time will tell. Isak would seem to be the most likely to make it at Arsenal as he has proven himself at Newcastle but I suspect we will not get him. Havertz to nab the striker spot not whoever we buy? In short, with the players coming back, the academy guys getting better, Max Dowman being a sensation, and the new players gelling to play as a fluid side, we could and should be in for our best season ever. Will we have Declan Rice echoing Thierry Henry? A nice double of Champions League and Premier League would do me.