After the first two weeks of January, Arsenal's season appeared to be running on fumes. There was already a sizeable gap to Premier League leaders Liverpool, and their hopes of domestic-cup glory took two hefty blows.
The Gunners were unceremoniously dumped out of the FA Cup by 10-man Manchester United on penalties, while Newcastle rocked up to the Emirates Stadium and left with a two-goal cushion from the first leg their Carabao Cup semi-final. It felt like Mikel Arteta's men had ran out of steam, that their various and rotating cast of injuries across the campaign had caught up with them.
There was criticism that the month-long gap between the two League Cup legs would cut off the excitement of the two semi-finals, but this has allowed Arsenal to build momentum again and they are now peaking at the perfect time. Sunday's 5-1 demolition of Manchester City was their fifth win from an unbeaten run spanning six games, a 2-2 draw with Aston Villa the only blemish on that record.
Going to St James' Park and winning by at least two goals is no easy feat, obviously. That doesn't mean it's impossible, or even unlikely at this point, though.
