Arsène Wenger must be a genius if he can come up with a points total that will be necessary to win the title. Between 82 and 86 points, since you ask. Either that or he was having a little joke, which has been known to happen. “He must have more experience of the English league than I thought,” the Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola said, making his own little joke. “Because I have no idea how many points it will take.”
Leaving aside the matter of how Wenger expects a more competitive league to result in a higher points total than the 77 that meant Claudio Ranieri’s side claiming the title last season (they would finish the season with 81), the one thing that can be said with certainty about Leicester’s success is they were greatly helped by having no midweek distractions. No Europe to start with, out of the League Cup in October and a third round exit from the FA Cup. Several managers made the point that playing just one game a week was an advantage to Leicester, and while there may have been an element of sour grapes in defeat to that observation, that does not mean it cannot be true.
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