Regenerated Arsenal feel new hope as they prepare for Manchester City

Arsène Wenger's men are enduring another trophy-less season, but recent form means the Champions League is in sight again

Arsène Wenger comes over all wistful when talk of mind games at the Premier League's summit crops up. It is as if the Frenchman is pining for the days when Sir Alex Ferguson's every public utterance at this stage of a season would, in some way, be aimed at undermining his efforts over a title run-in. More recently, Arsenal's manager has felt peripheral, almost forgotten, with Roberto Mancini hogging the barbs from Old Trafford. "Now I observe from the outside, but I would prefer to be in there," he says. "What you want is to be involved in the title race and we are not involved in it. That is basically sad."

It is strange, then, that another trophyless campaign in which Arsenal have not been in contention for the championship at any point actually feels as if it can culminate on a high. Theirs has been a season of extremes, ranging from desperate humiliations endured at Manchester United and Milan, which cast doubt upon the management's philosophy, to the impressive recoveries mounted in the autumn and spring, which have ensured Wenger can still hope to achieve his "basic target" of Champions League qualification. On Sunday Manchester City will confront a side eager to recover momentum after last week's surprising defeat at Loftus Road. Registering a first league win in this corner of north London for 37 years will not be straightforward.

Local optimism owes much to a recent charge, a revival summoned from the anxiety of a two-goal deficit against Tottenham Hotspur at the end of February. Wenger has conceded the five-goal rally that followed helped "to heal some bruises with the fans" and there had been seven successive league wins before the loss at QPR. Although Arsenal have four points fewer than at this stage last season, they rather limped into the summer a year ago. This time, they feel like a team on the charge, meaning – should a position in the top quartet be maintained despite the threat posed by Newcastle and Chelsea – the manager should be building from a position of strength.

A title challenge never materialised, but signs of progress have emerged nonetheless. Robin van Persie is the top flight's most prolific forward and the club hierarchy is convinced he will not depart as he enters the final 12 months of his contract even if, like Samir Nasri before him, he is coveted from afar. The determination to keep the 28-year-old is such that, where the club buckled over Nasri, they would be prepared to hold the Dutchman to his contract, meaning Wenger's close-season preparations should not be disrupted so critically this time around.

This team boast an experienced and impressive spine again with Van Persie, Thomas Vermaelen – last weekend's toils at QPR notwithstanding – Mikel Arteta and Alex Song. In Wojciech Szczesny, at 21, they benefit from a goalkeeper who has excelled consistently to the extent that he now feels a potential fixture for the next decade and around that core others have caught the eye. Laurent Koscielny's development has accelerated, the Frenchman exuding class at the heart of the defence, where he had initially appeared so tentative after his arrival from Lorient. Aaron Ramsey has featured in all but four of the club's league games, proving his fitness and quality, Jack Wilshere should be back for the next campaign, while Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, flung on for the last 28 minutes of the 8-2 loss at United on his debut, but nurtured thereafter, has shown flashes of dynamism to thrill.

There is encouragement, too, to be drawn from the shift in Wenger's outlook. The early-season struggles and messy divorces with Nasri and Cesc Fábregas forced a change of policy in the transfer market. There had been rushed recruitment at the start of last term, but, this time around, it appears money will be spent on seasoned talent in a more considered way. Arsenal should be in a position in the next few days to confirm Lukas Podolski's £10.9m signing from Köln, the Germany forward due to complete the move formally on July 1, while the highly regarded France international, Yann M'Vila, a player the London club have tracked for some time, will leave Rennes in the summer and has expressed a desire to work with Wenger.

There will be competition for the midfielder's signature, as there will be for Montpellier's prolific Olivier Giroud, whom Arsenal will continue to scout over the season's final weeks. The 25-year-old's goals have helped propel René Girard's side to the top of the French league, but there is a release clause in his contract, set initially at €10m but rising with caps and Champions League qualification, that could be exploited. The prospect of adding further firepower to the ranks, while retaining Van Persie, is an exciting one.

Arsenal's policy, of course, will only be firmed up once they know if Champions or Europa League football awaits next season. "It depends where we finish and how we finish because that will determine what we do during the break," Wenger says. "But what we have delivered in the last two months is positive."

The Frenchman had intimated earlier this term that he would consider his future if it became clear the club had stalled under his stewardship. For periods that scenario had not felt outlandish, yet, at the last, this team has served up genuine reasons for optimism.

Source: Dominic Fifield, The Guardian on 7 Apr 12