This is the story of one of the most beautiful resurrections of recent years in football. Adrift since the departure of Arsène Wenger in the summer of 2018, in a cemetery-like stadium, where supporters had become accustomed to leaving their hopes behind by passing the turnstiles, Arsenal is today more alive than Never. And if, after an idyllic three quarters of the season, the Gunners suddenly seem giddy as the league title stretches out their arms, the game of the year against Manchester City on Wednesday night comes at just the right time to see what the Baby Gunners have it in the belly.
Very happy to be on the pitch on this occasion to comment on the evening on Canal +, Robert Pirès does not hide his joy. “Arsenal’s last title dates back to 2004, I was there, realize, it’s been an eternity! For such a club, it’s an abnormality and we are all excited at the idea that they are in a position to win it again, ”enthuses the former member of the house.
Arteta was already in the balance with Emery at the time
If Arsenal supporters have also regained a taste for life, they owe it to one man and one man only: “Super Mikel Arteta”, as they nicknamed him in a song in his honor. For his first experience as number 1 on a bench, in his favorite club, Guardiola’s disciple has succeeded in the crazy bet of turning this drunken boat into a roaring speedboat. However, let’s be honest, not many people imagined him to raise Arsenal to this level in such a short time. He himself said it modestly on ESPNhe is a little “ahead” of the initial five-step plan offered to Arsenal bosses during his job interview in December 2019.
Despite a coaching CV as blank as Arsenal’s record in recent years, the owners did not hesitate for a moment to give him the keys to the truck. Author of several books on the Gunners, former Guardian journalist Amy Laurence, today at The Athletic tells us.
The owners had hesitated to take him just after Wenger, but they finally fell back on Unai Emery, more experienced. It was therefore natural for them to take it after the failed passage of Emery. He exuded great confidence and had a very clear idea of how he was going to go about raising the club, explains Amy Lawrence. Moreover, he has very strong principles from which he never departs, he gives the impression of having understood everything about the job and does not give off the impression of being a novice. During their discussion, they realized that he had the culture of the club and a clear vision for the future. »
An anecdote sheds a lot of light on the degree of trust owners have in Arteta, right from his first months at the club. “Arsene Wenger’s office door said ‘Manager’, and when he left and Emery arrived, they changed the name to ‘Head Coach’. Arteta also inherited this title but, when he won the FA Cup, during the Covid, after a disastrous first part of the season with Emery, with a team in a state of total disrepair, they said to themselves ‘ok, he’s even stronger than we thought” and they put the ‘Manager’ sign back! For what ? Because they were convinced that Mikel Arteta was the person who was going to restore the club to its former glory. »
Strong decisions, full support from management
In the aisles of the Arsenal training center, it is common to hear the Spaniard compare a football club to a rowing boat in which everyone must work together or risk not moving forward. This is what he has endeavored to do since his arrival, by focusing his entire management on the idea of the all-powerful collective and unity at all costs. Even if it means cutting off a few heads that protrude along the way, in particular that of Pierre-Emerick Aubamyangwhom he had nevertheless promoted to captain on his arrival at the club.
After some generosity from the Gabonese with the rules of procedure, Arteta judges the former Stéphanois harmful for his group and then decides to put him aside. The announcement made by Arteta in front of his players will remain one of the most memorable scenes of the documentary All or Nothing broadcast on Prime Video. In this documentary, we also see the leaders of Arsenal have not lifted a finger to defend their star striker. On the contrary, they followed their manager with their eyes closed and struggled to find him a way out during the winter transfer window.
“This is perhaps the most telling example of the power that Arteta has in this club, judge Robert Pirès. Once he has made a decision that he deems best for the good of the collective, the whole club is behind him and no one comes to hinder him. There, he judged that Aubameyang no longer fit into his plans because he was no longer in the spirit of Arsenal, of the institution, and he did not hesitate to show him the door. Mikel I know him, he is someone who has a lot, a lot of character, who is stubborn when he has an idea behind his head, he makes no concessions and he goes through with what he undertakes. »
The C1 while waiting for the title?
But it took him a long time to get there with his band. As he emerged from a 2020-2021 exercise that ended in an anonymous eighth place, Arteta went through an incredible zone of turbulence the following summer, stringing together three defeats in a row to start the 2021-2022 season, including a historic combi at home against Manchester City (5-0). To the point that, at the end of August, the supporters and the British media did not give much of his skin. However, far from giving in to panic, the leaders finally decided to change nothing.
Later, the Spaniard described this passage as “the best fifteen days since I’ve been in football”. The confidence displayed by both his managers and his players at the start of the season ended up convincing him that he had made the right choice in leaving Guardiola’s patronage at City. “The leaders totally believe in Arteta, they have indefinable faith in him, otherwise they would have separated from him at that time, abounds Amy Lawrence. The pressure around the club and the owners was enormous, but they ignored all that, they did not panic and the future proved them right. »
“At first it was very complicated, that’s clear, but in the end the decision-makers, including Edu, the sports director with whom he has a very good relationship, trusted him and gave him time to build a team. in his image, completes Robert Pires. It’s a fairly rare thing in modern football and it has to be underlined. We believed in him and above all we gave him the means to build the project he had developed when he arrived. The club was a bit in ruins after the departure of Arsène Wenger, it was necessary to start on new bases and not to rush. »
Little by little, through successful transfer windows, hundreds of millions (well) spent and hard work on a daily basis with his players, the hyperactive little Basque finally managed to put Arsenal back on the map of the London Underground. And in the absence of a title at the end of May, the club is already guaranteed to qualify for the next Champions League. What has not happened to the Gunners since 2017.