A stronger Arsenal + a weaker City = gap closed.

If only it were that simple. And if only the season could start now.

The gap was five points at the end of the last campaign but City tailed off once the title was won when the Gunners lost at Forest.

Pep Guardiola’s men drew with Brighton and lost to Brentford as they focused on their two cup finals.

It could have been more and City were a class apart in both the league games they played.

Deep down, fans know that. So does manager Mikel Arteta and so, crucially, does American owner Stan Kroenke.

That’s why they’ve spent north of £200 million on reinforcements and haven’t finished yet.

But Gooner optimism is not just fuelled by the quality of three big signings: it’s also helped by what’s happening to City’s all-conquering Treble winners.

Two stars have already gone and only one, Ilkay Gundogan, has been replaced.

More are threatening to leave and the only serious new recruit on the horizon is Josko Gvardiol, the Croatian defender.

But you just know that under that big, bald dome of his, Pep’s brain will be working overtime.

All Arsenal can do is concentrate on strengthening their own squad which already looks significantly better than last season’s.

In Declan Rice, Kai Havertz and Jurrien Timber, they have bolstered all three key areas of the pitch.

Rice is a major coup, but is he a potential title clincher?

At a British record of £105m, he did not come cheap and, curiously, City made a half-hearted bid of £90m.

Pep obviously rates the England man but City have their limits and wouldn’t go above. Nor is a defensive midfielder their top priority.

But for Arsenal, it was and Arteta was not to be rebuffed. It took three bids but he got his man in the end and he could be the difference.

The ex-Hammer is not yet a great player but has the potential to become one. But already he’s a leader and Arsenal’s young side needed one.

Current skipper Martin Odegaard was found wanting in the crucial games – notably against City – when Oleksandr Zinchenko offered more leadership even though he was a new arrival.

And Rice’s game is still developing. Known primarily for his defensive qualities, he is comfortable on the ball and capable of playing a more advanced role.

With better players around him at Arsenal, he’ll be encouraged to surge forward and could well claim a few assists and the odd goal.

If Rice is the headline act, the most interesting recruit is Havertz.

He arrived at Chelsea in 2020 as one of Roman Abramovich’s last big signings – a club record fee of £72m from Bayer Leverkusen.

But despite coolly slotting home the winning goal in the Champions League final against City, he was mostly underwhelming.

None of three Chelsea managers found his right position and, in the end, the Blues were happy to get almost all their money back when Arsenal came calling.

The German is a cool, diffident character who is anything but flash. An animal lover with a fine pedigree, he can sniff an assist more often than a goal.

His father was a cop, his mother a lawyer and he has represented his country at every level from Under-16.

Only just turned 24, he’s a deep thinker about the game and life, but has been wasted up top.

Arteta intends to play him deeper, which he prefers. And from midfield, he can create openings for the front three.

He could just be the man to make the most of attacking jewels like Gabriel Jesus, Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli.

Havertz must be the only footballer to own a donkey sanctuary but his divine touch ensures that he’s in no danger of being called one.

The third signing so far is Timber, a Dutch defender from Ajax. As you’d expect from such a well-polished institution, he’s got a good first touch and is comfortable on the ball.

Versatile – he’s equally at home at right-back or centre-back – and strong in the tackle, his reading of the game has been compared with Virgil van Dijk.

If Pep isn’t getting nervous by now, then when will he?

Clearly, Arteta, once the great man’s wide-eyed pupil, has done his homework.

Of the existing players, Saka has the ability to become truly world-class and with the likes of Rice and Havertz behind him, this season may well be when he takes another step up.

Having added to his squad, Arteta can now afford to let players leave in order to meet Financial Fair Play regulations.

So far the departures of Granit Xhaka and Pablo Mari raised £25m between them, but more are on the cards.

Even Scotland left-back Kieran Tierney may be deemed surplus with the arrival of Timber and he would be expected to raise much more than that alone.

Not least among Arteta’s achievements has been to persuade Kroenke to fund this title charge.

Notoriously Scrooge-like with Arsene Wenger, ‘Silent Stan’ has decided to make some noise in his dotage.

In a boardroom reshuffle, the 75-year-old and son Josh, 42, became co-chairmen in March.

Although he’s an even less frequent visitor to the UK than the Glazers, he has never aroused the antipathy the Manchester United owners have.

Indeed, Josh is said to have forged a strong relationship with Arteta.

It’s 20 years since they won the title and seven since they were in the Champions League so the time is nigh.

With Guardiola’s era due to close at the end of the coming season, many feel it may take another year for Arsenal to finally land the title.

But if pre-season is anything to go by, a growing number of Gooners are beginning to believe that they may not have to wait that long.

The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of FMT.