3) They’re genuine underdogs
Okay, so a picture of Mesut Ozil, Santi Cazorla and Alexis Sanchez perhaps isn’t the best way to illustrate this point, but Arsenal are genuine underdogs in this title race, even if they’re not underdogs in the way that, say, Stoke would be. Forgetting the huge gap they still have to make up, the Gunners have not won the title since 2004 and would not have been anyone’s pick to do so at the beginning of the season – especially having endured such a disappointing start to the campaign. For the sake of keeping some magic in the game, let’s see as close as we can expect of a repeat of what Atletico Madrid did last season – a team with far less money to blow than their nearest rivals who would genuinely surprise everyone if they won it.