Arsene Wenger has once again been singing his teams praises after they demolished Porto to move into the last eight of the Champions League, and with the team lying in a good position in the Premier League race he believes his young squad are capable of achieving a brilliant double. Arsenal have not won a trophy since 2005 but Wenger is confident they can end that drought this season with a couple of months of the season still to go and the team capable of beating anyone on their day. The Gunners were trailing 2-1 after the first leg against Porto but thrashed the Portuguese side at the Emirates 5-0 with Nicklas Bendter knocking in a hat-trick, the side were also missing captain Cesc Fabregas through injury which makes the result all the more impressive.

They are now in the last eight of the Champions League meaning attentions will now turn back to the Premier League with the Gunners lurking dangerously behind the more fancied Man United and Chelsea. Arsenal have the easiest run-in of the three with their toughest match left being a trip to White Hart Lane to face Spurs, outside of that game they look more than capable of winning every match which could see them pick up the Premier League. Over the last year or two there have been a few dissenting voices amongst the Gunners fans worried about the lack of silverware, through the tough period though Wenger has maintained his belief in his squad and has consistently resisted the temptation to add big money signings to the thin looking squad.

He now appears to be vindicated with the team playing as well as they have done for a number of years although they now face a crucial couple of months in their development. The season could end with the team decorated with Champions League and Premier League medals or it could all go wrong again leaving the team without a trophy once again. The Champions League will be the tougher of the two competition to win for Arsenal as you have to question their ability to beat United or Chelsea over two legs should the draw pan out that way,the same can be said of Barcelona who are the team to beat in this years tournament looking at the Champions League Odds. The Premier League though looks very much a possibility with a straight forward run-in on the cards and they have to be good value to win the title for the first time in seven years.

If Arsenal are able to pick up one or two trophies this season then it would have to be considered Arsene Wenger’s greatest achievement as the Arsenal Manager after the team were all but written off before Christmas. They are a side capable of going on a winning run and the Sack Race believes that this could well be  a pivotal year for Arsene Wenger as the Manager of Arsenal as he embarks on the most important period he has faced since he arrived at Highbury back in 1997.

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