Trouble at Arsenal: Wake Up and Smell the Ashes, Arsene

Top of the EPL by one point and through to the knockout stages of the Champions League, Arsenal look like a good bet for success this season.

The Gunners are spearheaded by the dynamic Cesc Fabregas, who at 20 years of age is already in his fifth season for Arsenal. Given the youth and talent at Arsene Wegner's disposal, it would seem foolish not to bet on the club for at least one trophy.

But that's exactly what I'm going to do.

You heard it here first: Arsenal will end up without the League, Champions League, and FA Cup this season.

Call me daft, but hear me out...

The most obvious weakness in the squad is the lack of depth. The Gunners also have a keeper in Manuel Almunia who has yet to see action at high levels, and their defense is prone to error.

Other than Fabregas and Alexander Helb, the midfield is either inexperienced or inferior. The club do have a talented forward line, but they only have two out-and-out forwards in Emmanuel Adebayor and Nicklas Bendtner—and neither is good enough to lead the attack.

Robin Van Persie and Teho Walcott, meanwhile, are too lightweight to be employed as target men, and are both better off coming in from wide.

Arsenal's tournament successes mean that the team's core players will have to turn out for 60-odd games over the course season. This is highly stressful, especially for players who are still in the early years of physical development—and may well lead to a second-half fade for the Gunners.

Arsenal has performed well so far this season, but I'd like to remind readers that their only real opponents to date were Manchester United at home (2-2, lucky to have got away with a point), Liverpool away (1-1), and Sevilla home and away (3-0 and 1-3 respectively).

The real test comes when the Gunners face a resurgent Chelsea this weekend—to say noting of the opponents they'll face in the Champions League knockout stage.

If a Fabregas-less Arsenal does so badly against a less-than mediocre Middlesbrough side (who happened to perform brilliantly), your guess is as good as mine on how they'll fare against the buoyant Blues.

In any event, Arsene has to wake up and smell the ashes—and soon. If he doesn't make a purchase or two in the January transfer window to address the lack of depth, he risks seeing a bright start come to ruin.

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