Arsenal enter the 2026-27 Premier League season in a position of strength, while many of their rivals are dealing with major changes. But defending a title has rarely been easy, and several key questions could decide whether the champions stay on top or not.
For the first time in 22 years, Arsenal begin a Premier League season as reigning champions. The challenge now is simple: prove last season was not the peak, but instead was the start of something more enduring.
Those expectations will have only grown after a commanding 3-0 win over Manchester City in the Community Shield. Results in that fixture should always be treated with caution. After all, only one of the previous 15 Community Shield winners has gone on to lift the Premier League trophy that season. But the manner of Arsenal’s performance was convincing nonetheless.
Their 3-0 win was the largest margin of victory in the Community Shield since they beat Manchester City by the same scoreline in 2014. In what was Enzo Maresca’s first competitive game in charge of City, Arsenal looked sharper, more cohesive and more settled.
A sense of continuity is one of the main reasons they are rightly tagged as favourites to win the title again this season. While many of their rivals are navigating managerial changes, squad overhauls or both, Arsenal enter the season with a clear identity and a group that has grown together over several years.
They kick off the Premier League season on Friday against Coventry City. Before then, here are five questions that could define whether they retain their crown.
Does Continuity Give Arsenal a Killer Advantage?
Next season will be the first since the Premier League’s inception in 1992 not to feature any of the main managerial figures who defined its modern era. No Sir Alex Ferguson, Arsené Wenger, José Mourinho, Jürgen Klopp or Pep Guardiola.
Over the summer, we’ve seen unprecedented levels of manager turnover. Almost half the division will begin the season under new leadership, with nine clubs changing managers.
Nine managers taking charge of their first league game with a club on the opening weekend will be the most in a top-flight season since 1946-47, the first campaign after the Second World War.
Among Arsenal’s realistic title rivals, only Michael Carrick at Manchester United and Unai Emery at Aston Villa were already in place before this summer. Even then, both clubs are considered outsiders by the Opta supercomputer, with United given a 6.2% chance of winning the title and Villa 4.8%.
Premier League predictions:
Premier LeaguePremier League Predictions 2026-27: The Opta Supercomputer Projections
4 days ago Harry CarrWhen looking at the current tenure of every Premier League manager, Mikel Arteta is comfortably the longest-serving head coach in the division. The club have committed fully to him over a six-year rebuild and were rewarded handsomely last year.
It’s only a sample of one game, but the team that beat City in the Community Shield looked like one primed to challenge again. In total, 74% of Arsenal’s minutes in that match were played by footballers in what might be considered their peak years (24-29), while David Raya was the only player over 30 to feature.
With many major rivals entering periods of transition both on and off the pitch, the timing looks ripe for Arsenal to put their foot on the pedal. They deserve their status as favourites.
How Difficult Is It to Win Back-to-Back Premier League Titles?
Like many Premier League records, our perception of what is ‘normal’ has been distorted by Guardiola’s Manchester City. Before City’s era of dominance, defending a Premier League title was rare.
Guardiola made it look anything but; between 2017-18 and 2023-24, City won six of seven league titles and successfully defended their crown on four occasions.
Before Pep’s first title, though, the trophy had changed hands in each of the previous eight seasons. The last successful title defence before his arrival came back in 2009, when Man Utd secured a third consecutive league crown.
Before Guardiola, only two managers had overseen successful Premier League title defences: Sir Alex Ferguson at United and José Mourinho at Chelsea.
Arsenal have not successfully retained the top-flight title since 1935, when they became just the second club in English football history to win three successive league championships.
With the pressure of ending a long wait for a title now lifted, Arsenal’s challenge is maintaining the performance levels that got them there in the first place. Arteta has a fantastic opportunity to add his name to that illustrious group of coaches who’ve successfully defended their league crown.
Are There Defensive Concerns Without Saliba and Timber?
It’s no secret that Arsenal’s title triumph was built on their rock-solid defence.
They conceded just 27 goals in the league last season, eight fewer than any other side. They were well worth that, too, with their underlying numbers equally as strong. Arsenal conceded just 28.3 expected goals (xG) across their domestic campaign, the best figure not only in England but across Europe’s top five leagues.
Their average of 0.74 xG conceded per game is the fourth-lowest figure ever recorded by a team on record (since 2012-13) in the Premier League.
Maintaining those standards may prove difficult, however, not just because they’re so hard to achieve in the first place, but also given that Arsenal have several key absences at the start of the season.
Christos Tzolis should further strengthen their ability from dead balls. Eight of his 23 assists in the Belgian top flight last season came from set-piece situations (34.7%), the fifth-highest figure of any player to register five or more assists. He’s already shown his ability to whip inswinging corners in from the left, picking up an assist in a pre-season friendly against Real Betis.
However, new refereeing directives might limit how effective Arsenal can be at set-pieces, particularly corners. Officials have been instructed to adopt a stricter interpretation of holding and grappling during set-pieces this season.
The guidance states that officials will increase recognition of “clear holding actions that have clear material impact” and “non-footballing holding actions”. As part of a trial, VAR will also be able to review incidents before a set-piece if they directly lead to a goal, penalty or disciplinary sanction.
It will be fascinating to see whether those changes have any tangible effect on one of Arsenal’s greatest strengths.
Have Arsenal Done Enough to Strengthen In Attack?
Arsenal scored just 71 goals in the 2025-26 campaign. That’s not a lot for a Premier League-winning side. In fact, just four title-winners have scored fewer than 71 goals across the 33 seasons of completed Premier League action; Arsenal themselves have even scored more than that in 15 different seasons.
If last summer Arsenal’s main quest was trying to find a goalscoring centre-forward, this transfer window the priority has been an upgrade on the left side of attack.
Kai Havertz again appear set to compete for the central striker role.
Gyökeres had a respectable debut campaign but did not deliver the explosive impact many anticipated. Seven players finished the season with more non-penalty Premier League goals than his 11.
Much of Arsenal’s attacking improvement may therefore come from improved availability rather than new signings.
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