The Gunners suffered a 3-1 home defeat to Manchester United on Sunday and will travel to Chelsea this weekend.
“We are on schedule to do good things this season, we have only a little step to get back to the top of the league,” said Almunia.
“When you think about where we were after the Chelsea game [in November], that is a great achievement.
“Sometimes it is better to come back from third or fourth to challenge than to be at the top all the time.”
