I recently had a good old chinwag with my good friend Phil (PAL), and we were talking about whether or not the media at large and our own fanbase have really given enough thought to what was achieved last season – not simply by looking at the results, but rather by looking at what the club overcame to achieve those results.
Let’s start by looking at how we were perceived.
Perennial bottlers living in the shadow of a Manchester City club who, despite having over 115 charges against them, were seen as the shining example of what we, as three-time runners-up, needed to emulate.
Secondly, Mikel Arteta had to win a trophy this season or, according to the media and a section of our fanbase, he would have to be sacked.
There were no alternative scenarios allowed, although a few of us “Arteta fanboys” did cite injuries that had blighted our previous campaigns as a reason to be cautious.
It turned out that our injury jinx was ready and waiting to blow us off course yet again!
Just look at the injuries Arsenal overcame
We lost Havertz for around two-thirds of the season.
We lost Merino for around two-thirds of the season.
We lost Saka for around half of the season.
We lost Timber for around half of the season.
We lost Calafiori for around half of the season.
We lost Odegaard for around half of the season.
We lost White for around half of the season.
Because of the above, we played Zubimendi into the ground, so much so that he was replaced for the last six or so games by Skelly.
Rice was another player who ended the season running on fumes, and how he kept going was a miracle.
Yet none of the above seemed to be taken into account as we dropped points and played “retention of the ball” type of games.
The achievements shouldn’t be separated from the circumstances
It’s worth remembering that we won the Premier League, got to the final of a domestic cup and were undefeated in the CL right up until the final, where we lost in a penalty shootout.
Of course, every Gooner knows these facts, but so many seem unaware of the background as to how they were achieved against all the odds and while the manager and players were under such intense pressure to succeed… or else!!
Which brings me to my final points.
The injury jinx has already struck, with both Timber and Saliba reportedly out for months.
We have addressed the midfield scenario with the brilliant signing of Bruno Guimaraes.
We are reportedly looking for a RB/RCD to cover that area.
We are also, reportedly, looking to strengthen our attacking squad depth.
We aren’t afraid to go after world-class players from clubs who previously plundered our players.
But whatever happens this season, we should remember with clarity just what Mikel Arteta and his squad of players achieved last season against all the odds, predictions and the style of football that was seen to be by choice rather than forced upon us by the circumstances listed above.
Perhaps only when you put all of those circumstances together do you fully appreciate what this Arsenal team achieved.
Thanks for the idea for this article, Phil!!
ken1945
So what do you think, fellow Gooners? Has last season’s achievement been fully appreciated, or have the circumstances Arteta and his players had to overcome already been forgotten? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
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Arteta is a legendary Gunner for winning EPL after more than two decades of no major trophy and finishing three consecutive EPL seasons as a runner-up isn’t a small feat
I said to my brother I don’t remember a Champion of the Prem who has had this much disrespect.
I would say we had more criticism then Man United, Liverpool and Chelsea last season which is crazy .
I think social media has allot to do with it , I think banter has become spiteful, YouTubers playing a role to get views
and I think younger Gooners are influenced by that
everything is sensationalised ( no a 16 year old shouldn’t play next week because he did okay in a pre season game !)
for example look at the disrespect Zubimendi gets when all he did wrong was work himself into the ground so had to not start three games in the title race
Arsenal and Arteta did absolutely brilliantly last season. MA has taken his place amongst the greatest..
Who cares what other people think?
But hopefully this is just the beginning – the challenge was getting to the top now we have to stay in front. COYG.
We’re media darlings right now, especially in the Guardian & Mail, so let’s keep it there.
An interesting piece pass by the writer, yes some of us, the real general were accused of being an Arteta fan boys. , but supporting the Spaniard does not make someone less if an Arsenal fan.
In fact backing the manager often come from a deep desire to see the club over the long term.
We must admit, the Spaniard rebuilt the team from the ground up with a clear , modern style of play..
It is this DNA of a strong depth and tactical flexibility, which lay the foundation for the team to survive a long injury list without collapsing in major matches
The Spaniard and Arsenal deserves their flowers
Ken1945
Congratulations on putting your voice out there.
You were right to point out yet another injury crisis and to call those to account for the never unrelenting pressure that Arteta got whenever the opportunity arose to do so.
For what it’s worth, having signed players who could fill more than one position was the bright thing to do. I didn’t buy into the idea that a player couldn’t or shouldn’t be bought if he was unable to mix and match. Without that ability to fill in during those lengthy absences previously, 2nd two years ago looked unlikely and winning last season could have hung by a thread
I did wonder if Arteta had it in him to encourage his team to glory after so many near misses and felt that continuing this season without winning the league was a bridge too far. Thankfully I didn’t have to contemplate that possibility after all
Some good points raised in the article but to make it a bit more objective here are a few counter-points.
1. Injuries are an unfortunate part of the game, which is why Arsenal have spent an absolute fortune in recent years (culminating in about a £250 million spend last summer) to ensure there is strength in depth in every position. Unfortunately some of the back-up signings have not yet shown sufficient quality.
2. Of the 7 players on the injury list in the article, the length of absence of 5 of those players has been significantly overstated. A couple of examples – Saka and Timber out “for around half the season”. Saka was involved in 31/38 games and Timber in 30/38 games. To be fair, a lack of full fitness might have had an effect on their level of performance.
3. I don’t accept that negative tactics sometimes bordering on the bizarre were essential because of injuries. To desperately defend a 1-goal lead against the superior players of PSG is one thing. To do so (twice) against Wolves and against a number of other bottom half teams is shockingly poor.
4. Arsenal won the league with a far from outstanding 85 points and a meagre total of 71 goals partly because other top teams were nowhere near their best for much of the season. In 2023-24 we had 89 points and scored 91 goals, and from 1st January to the end of the season won 16 and drew 1 (away at Man City) of the last 18 games, with highly impressive all-round stats during that period. Unfortunately in that time Man City were close to unstoppable and went on an even longer outstanding run, to edge us out on the final day. The football Arsenal played last season was a pale shadow of that previous level, despite all the additional expensive signings in the meantime.
5. Though Arsenal played some of their best football of the season in the league stage in Europe, they were hugely fortunate with the way the knockout draw worked out up to the final, facing Bayer Leverkusen, Sporting Lisbon and the weakest Atletico Madrid team for a number of years (who only overcame Barcelona because of a red card in each leg). Despite the relatively easy draw, each round was frankly a grim, hard battle that could have gone either way.
I will probably be castigated by some or accused of not being a real fan but most of what I have stated is far more factual than opinion-based.
Delighted to see the lads currently 3-0 up against Man City and hoping for a lot more of this in the next 9 months.
There is nothing like fortune if you end up on top! So I don’t see any reason of us not being deserved winners. Our consistency was rewarded in the end.
Regarding the teams we faced in the KO rounds of the CL, that’s the draw for you. Not like PSG had a hard draw…
I wasn’t comparing Arsenal’s draw with PSG or anyone else – but since you mention them, PSG had Bayern Munich in the semis and Liverpool in quarters – a hell of a lot harder than our draw.
On a separate issue, most of my comments were based on factual observations but the series of posts that have followed show it is a waste of time to say anything that goes against the grain. Stick with the herd or say nothing is the best policy on here. Bye for now.
I know you weren’t comparing, but it’s always best to look at both sides. While Bayern Munich was a tough tie, Liverpool were in a bit of mess at the time, what with players unrest with their Head Coach. We earnt the right by topping the group after the 8 games.
Exactly HD, we earned the right. It wasn’t handed over!
Kenya001 👍
Steve P as I wrote the article, I do like to see other people’s opinions and yours are no exception, even if they differ from mine.
1. When two players covering the same position get injured , such as White and Timber, or Odegaard and Merinho, that’s where the problems begin and where tactics are needed.
2. I notice you quote 38 games so I assume your just looking at PL stats? As I said we must remember we got to a domestic final and the CL final as well .so there were many more games involved including our FA Cup run.
3. You don’t accept playing defensive was forced upon us against poorer sides- but we won the PL by doing just that.
I was at the Wolves game and walked out because of the c@@p football being played….but that’s the point of my article – did we really take into account how the injuries played a part in that performance? I didn’t at the time and more fool me!!
Those three home points were invaluable to us and kept us in touch for the title.
4. It really doesn’t matter how many points you make as long as they are enough to win you the title and the same goes for goals scored.
Winning 1-0 or 5-0 still gives you three points and all this talk about other teams not being at their best means nothing when, in the same breath, your complaining that The Arsenal weren’t playing the better type of football as they were the previous season!!
Let’s not forget every club spent money before the start of last season and we weren’t the top of that table.
5. We remained undefeated right throughout the CL even after extra time in the final and lost on penalties.
Once again you seem to belittle our opponents and seem to imply that if it wasn’t for red cards in games we weren’t even involved in, we would have faced Barcelona…..and???
You must have been watching different CL matches if you think each round was a “grim hard battle.”
I suggest,for example you go back and look at our performance at SL or BM.
So in fact your views are opinion based .each and everyone of them, just as most of mine are – except of course we did win the PL, did get to the final of the CL and a domestic cup, while having to deal with multiple injuries for long periods.
I am also loving the performance today and it’s great to see how a fully fit squad of players (apart from Saliba and Timber of course) can perform.
Mind you, some might say that we’re lucky City115 have lost Pep, while spending lots of money on new signings who need time to bed in .
It doesn’t seem to be a problem for our two brand new signings though and the pressure of winning the PL is a weight off our shoulders.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts and I hope you stay with JA, as we do have some great debates here .
Bang on Steve 👍
In the end I believe every Arsenal fan appreciated the achievements, this , shown by the massive celebrations world wide.
Albeit throughout the season there were differed opinions on the type of football, hopefully it changes this upcoming season.
Very good article Ken.
Having watched the demolition of city115 todsy and seen the way we played, surely there’s no Gooner out there who doubts our owner, manager and players anymore are there?
Such is our depth,I forgot that Saliba and Timber were out injured while the likes of Dowman and Merino never got off the bench and Martinelli wasn’t even in the squad!!
Thanks HD and SueP
I’ve been one of Arteta’s biggest critics at times, I know you’re all in shock😂. But credit where credit is due, he’s built a good quality sized squad that’s shown its self to be able to compete on all fronts.
Something that was unthinkable 6 years ago. Although certain players are not performing as we would like, the fact Arteta still gets the team to do what they did last season was outstanding really.
Hopefully he can keep the club on this upward trajectory, add to the squad when needed. And get some more silverware in our trophy cabinet.
I’ve just praised Arteta🤦♂️, I must see a doctor. 😂👍
Swoon. Thud. Me hitting the floor
Afternoon SueP,
If you’ve hurt you’re self with you’re swoon and thud, I hope you’re not thinking of suing me. 😂
Derek at one time or another I suggest every single person on JA criticised MA.
I certainly did and quite forcibly as well at times.
He will still make mistakes, as he’s only human like the rest of us but it’s taken a lot of Gooners a while to appreciate the positives he’s brought to the club and that doesn’t just mean trophies.
As you say what he achieved last season was outstanding and that was the point of the article along with the suggestion that many of us really hadn’t seen the wood for the trees.
Good afternoon Ken1945,
Good to see you’re comments and articles back on JA. I like you’re article a lot, and you’re response to me I must say I agree with that to.
What’s wrong with me, I’ really need to see that doctor. 😂👍