Arsenal's Premier League triumph has lifted years of pressure and scrutiny from Mikel Arteta's squad, with the club now turning its focus to the Champions League final and ambitious summer transfer plans.
In those long minutes before the final whistle at Bournemouth, some of Mikel Arteta's players had to leave the room for a few moments to themselves. It was that tense. They were feeling every second of it. When Manchester City's 1-1 draw was finally confirmed, there was euphoria – but some in the room noticed something else in the reaction. It was pure release. There were guttural roars as players simply let everything out. Staff members immediately burst into tears.
The feeling, when some reflected on it the next day, was that this meant far more than just the title or ending a 22-year wait – despite how significant those achievements obviously are. It was also a release from scrutiny and criticism. An instinctive awareness that all the barracking they had faced was suddenly irrelevant. They were champions, not bottlers.
A Defining Triumph of the Social Media Age
There are some within the industry who feel there is consequently another distinctive element to this title victory. It is one of the defining triumphs of the social media age. There have, of course, been multiple champions since platforms like Twitter and Instagram were founded, but the nature of social media means everything has escalated, accumulated and become self-perpetuating. It has gone to another level even compared to Liverpool ending their long wait in 2019.
Perhaps there is some strange appropriateness in Arsenal experiencing this most intensely, given some of the fan channels around the club helped shape modern online fan culture. The players will not see it that way, though. As club insiders say, some of them were aware of everything. You could see it in their reactions. There were even references to the bottle one Manchester City fan had thrown. And while that might feel like harmless banter to supporters, it becomes personal to players.
“If you’re 24 or 25,” one source says, “you’ve grown up with all of this. So much of your life and career is online. It’s this enormous online pressure, incomparable to what players used to experience. Now, it’s constant noise.” There is understandably a view that this noise, combined with the atmosphere in the stands, contributed to so many nervous matches – along with tactics that arguably heightened the tension. Arsenal played almost every game on the edge. There has rarely been a run-in like it. In many ways, it is testament to their resolve.
Figures at the club argue this is also why Declan Rice should have won player of the year. He kept producing despite all the pressure and “never shied away”. Now, having come through all of that, there is considerable hope it could lead to even more. The weight lifted is enormous. A huge psychological burden from this long pursuit of the title has finally been removed. The players will not have to hear it any more. Will it allow them to play with more freedom?
Arteta's Tactical Evolution and Squad Refresh
Some of that depends on Arteta, who is likely to remain ultra-controlling. That usually only changes with age and experience, as happened with Pep Guardiola. The word around the club for some time, however, has been that one major trophy could help “unlock” a new mindset within the squad. While this is not to suggest Arsenal will replicate Sir Alex Ferguson’s Manchester United, there may be echoes of what happened between 1992-93 and 1993-94. United ended their own 26-year wait and then kicked on again, becoming a more assertive and aggressive side. They gained the assurance that only victory can bring.
Alongside a potential psychological shift, Arsenal also want to raise the level of the squad. Julian Alvarez is the major target, although transfer business will depend on player trading, with an expectation of three incomings and three departures. Gabriel Martinelli currently looks the leading candidate to leave, while Gabriel Jesus could return to Brazil amid significant interest from clubs in his home country. Arsenal would ask for only a nominal £5m fee, although removing his wages would represent a considerable saving. There is also genuine interest in Junior Kroupi of Bournemouth. The main objective is to refresh the squad chemistry while improving overall quality.
Champions League Final: A Bonus Opportunity
Everything could change even further with the Champions League final. It is remarkable to think the biggest prize in club football is almost a bonus for Arsenal. While you would not call the match a “free hit”, given what it represents and how desperate the players are to win it, Arsenal’s main target for the season has already been achieved. It means they go into the game with genuine optimism. There is a new lightness around the club. And although Paris Saint-Germain have been billed as overwhelming favourites, Arsenal’s own analysis views it as a genuine 50-50 contest. The data suggests the strengths of both teams match up closely. Many coaches genuinely believe Arteta has built one of the most tactically sophisticated and rounded teams in football.
Some would still argue they need more in attack. Others had claimed they lacked substance because they had never won anything. That argument has now disappeared – along with so much of the doubt.
