Arsenal has had an excellent start in the latest Premier League season and this will certainly increase the odds of Mikel Artetaclaiming the award of Manager of the Month in the campaign. 

The performance

The Gunners have already recorded victories over Fulham, Bournemouth, Leicester City and Crystal Palace so far and are currently sitting on top of the table.

In addition, they are also the only side so far to have a 100% winning record in the division and they are looking to keep it going on Wednesday night against Aston Villa.

Should the team end this month with 15 points out of a possible 15, then it would definitely not be surprising for Arteta to have the Premier League acknowledge his work. 

It is tradition for the shortlist of Manager of the Month to be announced before the reveal. It is expected to be announced in the coming week and the winner to be revealed in early September.

The curse

While it would definitely be great for Artetaif he wins Manager of the Month, he would have to avoid the fate that had befallen Nuno EspiritoSanto. 

The Portuguese tactician had landed the same award less than a year ago when he had an excellent start as the head coach for Tottenham Hotspur. 

After three games, the Lilywhites had climbed to the top of the table with nine points. They had played against the likes of Watford, Wolves and Manchester City, but had not conceded a single goal. 

But, it went downhill once Nuno was named Manager of the Month, with Arsenal fans delighted at the turn of events. 

In September, Tottenham had lost all three matches, including a loss at Emirates Stadium by 3-1. Last October, Thomas Tuchelhad also won the award for the performance of his Chelsea side.

But, his team also lost two out of the three games they played in the next month and the festive season saw them struggle and they eventually slipped out of the race for the Premier League title.

Arteta’sexperience

Arteta also claimed the award twice in the last season and his own experience should tell him about the curse. Arsenal had a perfect September, but then drew against Crystal Palace and Brighton.

They did beat Leicester and Aston Villa, but what happened in March may haunt Arteta. Soon after he won the award, the Gunners had suffered losses in all three consecutive games.

These were against Southampton, Brighton and Palace. Had they managed to win even one of those matches, they could have been in the Champions League this season, as they missed out by two points.

Therefore, if Arsenal has to maintain their great start to this season, Artetacannot afford to become a victim of the ‘curse’ of Manager of the Month yet again. 

His team’s matches in September are against Everton, Manchester United and Brentfordand fixtures in October are against Manchester City, Liverpool and the Spurs. 

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