Arsene Wenger Talks Premier League Title Race and More at Arsenal's 2016 AGM

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger believes his Gunners side is in the best position it has been for five or six years to truly compete for the title, and the Frenchman set the points target they will have to hit if they are to win the Premier League for the first time since 2004.

The north London outfit have made an impressive start to the 2016-17 campaign and are level on points with league leaders Manchester City after nine matches.

Wenger, speaking at Monday's annual general meeting at the Emirates Stadium, indicated that Arsenal will need to maintain the same level of form throughout the term if they are to be triumphant, per James Olley in the Evening Standard:

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Today we are in a much more competitive position than we were five or six years ago to fight for the championship. That’s where we are. I believe we have a competitive team in a very competitive league. If you look well after nine games, you can see the first trend is set. It is about 20 points and that means the championship will certainly be decided by 82-86 points and what we have learned since the start of the season, every game you have fight and to absolutely be at your best to have a chance to win it. 

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Saturday's 0-0 home draw with Middlesbrough put an end to the Gunners' seven-match winning streak in all competitions and prevented Arsenal going top of the table outright.

However, after some astute additions in the summer transfer window, the Gunners do have more strength in depth in their squad than they have for some time, a factor that will prove crucial to their competitiveness over a long season, per ESPN FC's James McNicholas.

Wenger spoke with confidence about Arsenal's ability this season to compete for silverware on several fronts.

They face Reading on Tuesday in the EFL Cup, and although Wenger hinted he may field some youngsters against the Championship side, he made his winning intentions clear, per Joe Mewis in the Mirror: 

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I believe the team has the commitment, togetherness, hunger, desire and unity and we have a good chance to compete for the Premier League.

Our challenge is to compete for everything starting tomorrow in the League Cup and even if you see some new faces our desire is to qualify and fight for everything because I believe we have a squad that is more mature and better equipped to cope with all the challenges we have.

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Arsenal AGMs in the past have been tense, combative affairs, with Gunners fans questioning the club's transfer policy and ambition.

However, per the Associated Press' Rob Harris, the mood was much more celebratory on Monday as Wenger's recent 20-year anniversary at the club was marked, and he signed autographs after:

Pressing issues were addressed, though, not least the question of whether Wenger will stay past the end of his contract at the close of the current campaign.

Per BBC Sport's David Ornstein, Arsenal chairman Sir Chips Keswick said discussions will take place when the time is right:

CEO Ivan Gazidis also covered the pressing matter of contract renewals for Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil, saying Arsenal "have a good track record in recent season of retaining our key players," per Mewis.

The likelihood is that Wenger, Ozil and Sanchez will all remain at the Emirates if Arsenal enjoy a successful season in 2016-17.

But if their form drops and they do not maintain their title challenge throughout the campaign, the Arsenal futures of all three could be under threat.