8th, 8th, and 5th respectively were the league season results Arsenal football club recorded between the 2019/2020 till the end of last season, following the appointment of Head Coach Mikel Arteta on the 20th December 2019.
A bizarre turn of events was the best way to describe the situation at the Emirates, considering the Gunners’ high-flying start since his takeover, crowned by the FA Cup triumph, rookie manager Mikel Arteta was soaring through the first year of his appointment.
His years since have looked bleaker. The amount of money spent by the club in the summer transfer windows of the three seasons (2019-20 to 2021-22) totalled £377.2 million, and all that has appeared as yield so far for these “revolutionary pounds” spent was an FA Cup title. ‘It couldn’t be any worse’ Arsenal fans would have thought to themselves, after the young Spaniard, who many threw their weight behind, finished 8th in his first season as head coach (2019-20). Well, they weren’t exactly wrong. Another 8th-place finish was what followed in the 2020-21 season. A season that saw Arsenal lose as many as 13 league games – their joint record number of losses since the reform of the Premier League and finished below Leicester City and East London side West Ham United.
2021-2022 – the circus of a season
The 2021-22 season, which many thought would see the Gunners finally challenge the big guns, couldn’t have started any worse. Three straight defeats, including a resounding 5-0 loss at the Etihad, was the least possible way one would expect a side that had just spent £156.8 million on signings to start the league.
An eventful season for Arsenal, which featured everything but positive results, was further marred by the fallout between Mikel Arteta and club captain Aubameyang. Still, the Gunners appeared on course for a top 4 finish until back-to-back defeats late in the season against Tottenham and Eddie Howe’s Newcastle United, leaving Mikel Arteta’s side with little choice but to settle for a 5th-place finish.
On the back of the previous season’s result, the 5th place finish appeared positive, given the fact they completely missed out on continental football the season before. But for many, it was the same: ‘A circus of progress.’ To many Arsenal supporters, it appeared no actual strides were made, and little was expected to change when the club, on the morning of the 6th May 2022, announced the extension of Head Coach Mikel Arteta’s contract.
The 2022-23 season and a wave of ecstasy
After spending £121.5 million in the summer transfer window last year, with marquee signings such as Gabriel Jesus and Ukrainian Oleksandr Zinchenko joining the Gunners from title favourites Manchester City, few hoped for anything better than a 5th-place finish for the Gunners going into the new season. Naturally the spotlight was on Manchester City and Liverpool, who had just completed the signings of both Erling Haaland and Darwin Nunez respectively — it appeared on the card another battle of highly-rated youngsters.
While Arsenal pulled little media attention through the calibre of signings made, their dominating performance on the field, however, has brought them under the spotlight this season. Following successive 4-0 and 6-0 bashing of both Thomas Tuchel’s Chelsea and Julen Lopetegui’s Sevilla during the course of their pre-season, fans of the game gradually turned their attention to Arsenal. After concluding their pre-season campaign with five straight wins — the best since Mikel Arteta took the reins, Arsenal continued their dominating streak with five consecutive wins in their first five Premier League outings. So far, only three teams (Manchester United, Southampton, and Newcastle) have successfully snatched points off the Gunners, and for many, the unanswered question still remains; how did Mikel Arteta’s side experience such a surge in performance? We will try to answer this question in this piece.
But before we delve into what may just be working for Arsenal, it’s worth detailing the fine-tuning that Arteta has done with his squad since the start of the previous campaign, and the players he’s most closely trusted to carry out the job. Ten players this season have now played over double the minutes of the players ranking 12th and below on that list of minutes played this season, with only Zinchenko, due to his ceaseless injury troubles, being the exception. We can safely say Mikel Arteta now has his trusted leader at every position on the field — something the team has lacked in the past, historically criticized for lacking leadership and having a soft underbelly.
A REINVENTED SYSTEM OF PLAY: 4-2-3-1/4-1-4-1/4-3-3
Whether it’s a 4-2-3-1 or a 4-1-4-1 or even the highly favoured 4-3-3 system of play, one thing Mikel Arteta’s side have shown this season is their high level of fluidity in formation, bolstered by their inverted full-back Zinchenko and Ben White, as well Granit Xhaka — who for many remains the most improved Arsenal player this season. Xhaka not only steps forward into the attack, like a traditional number 8 as Thomas Partey holds the base of midfield, but also steps up in the team’s press. His counterpart Martin Ødegaard, the young club captain, is the one with significantly more freedom in floating about the pitch as a distinctive number 10. Also, the fluidity of the wide forwards for Arsenal and their efficiency in front of goal, has surely contributed to Arsenal’s stellar form this season.
A ROCK-SOLID DEFENSE-LINE
Alongside Gabriel and Zinchenko in the back line, returnee French defender William Saliba has re-entered, after successive loan spells in Marseille. Saliba has been brilliant in his 1v1 defensive duels alongside his clearance, using his strength, height, command, and defensive composure to great effect. His introduction to the team has meant Ben White‘s exchange to right-back, which has arguably been one of the best moves Arteta has made this season. White has also been immaculate as a full-back, exuding class under pressure, galloping up the right wing, and engaging to nearly the same extent as his counterpart on the left, Oleksandr Zinchenko.
Discussing Arsenal’s rise from fifth in 2021-22 to first place in the current campaign, after the victory against Brighton at the Amex, Ødegaard said: “We focus on every game to improve and get better. And of course, we are in a good position and we are really happy to be there. It is our job to keep fighting and keep improving and make sure that we can fight all the way. Missing the Champions League [last season] was a big disappointment for us and we said before the season that we were really hungry to come back stronger and better. I think we have done that and we are in a good way and have improved in a lot of areas with the ball, without the ball and in front of goal, our own box, a lot of things we have improved.”
In the buzz of the resounding win against Brighton, former Gunners manager Arsene Wenger told TV2: “It was a fantastic performance. Arsenal is getting stronger and stronger. It was a one-way street. I think they have all the necessary ingredients, both tactically and mentally. They can go all the way. Because, as you can see, they create so many chances. I don’t really see any weaknesses.”
It may appear too early to speak on who the title favourites in England are. But one thing is for sure, the display of Mikel Arteta’s young guns is nothing short of euphoric and one deserving of a Premier League crown. Not even a frustrating 0-0 draw against this season’s surprise package, Newcastle United last night can disrupt the confidence and momentum flowing through this club.
The relationship between the club/players and fanbase cannot go unnoticed. From ‘Kroenke Out’ chants ringing out from the rafters, attention and passionate discussions has shifted to matters on the pitch, with the Emirates resembling a fortress when the opposition come to town-thus it is of little surprise that Arsenal remain unbeaten at home this season. There is greater trust in the process and project that Arteta, alongside technical director Edu amongst other club staff, are building. Things are going way ahead of schedule, but the fans (and the owners) will not be complaining.
Arsenal, who are currently top of the league with 44 points, are now 13 points ahead of city rivals Tottenham. North London suddenly looks red again.
How quickly things can change.
