The score is 4-1 and Liverpool has the lead. The pressure is overpowering—this game will determine if Liverpool wins the Premier League title for the 2024-25 season. In the sixty-ninth minute, Tottenham defender Destiny Udogie scored an own goal to seal the win for Liverpool. 25 minutes later, Liverpool was celebrating with the Premier League Trophy held high. Another season has passed, still with no Arsenal title.
Arsenal won their last Premier League title 21 years ago. Since then, fans all over the world have been eager to reclaim it. Between the months of August and May, twenty teams from England compete to win the Premier League. Fans from all over the globe travel to come and support their teams, with an average of around 40,000 fans at each match.
One could only imagine the amount of pressure every professional player faces, especially playing under the weight of a 21-year trophy drought. Bukayo Saka, Arsenals starting right winger, faced a copious amount of hate, particularly after a penalty miss against West Ham in April 2023. This online hate led to serious police investigation in regards to racial abuse. Saka received similar abuse after missing a crucial penalty that lost the game for England in the Euro 2020 final. After the game, Arsenal posted a tweet reading: “Football can be so cruel. But for your personality. For your character. For your bravery… We’ll always be proud of you. And we can’t wait to have you back with us, Bukayo Saka.” Social media has a large impact on what players are receiving, especially in terms of hate comments. This adds on to the already excessive amounts of pressure they receive, with no actual filters. The club and Premier League continue to address this abuse with their No Room For Racism campaign to ensure an inclusive environment on and off the pitch.
In regards to supporting the team, Arsenal manager Arteta dove deeper into how even the tiniest of details can make a large difference. He also spoke about the importance of putting in the hours, even if that means having a meaningful conversation with someone. In an interview with The Athletic, he stated: “There is so much more to come. Because the manager that the boys needed three years ago is a different manager than they need today. The team has grown so much in every sense of that word they need somebody else–and that somebody else has to adapt and identify what is really important, what is really going to get that fire in the belly to get the best out of them. That’s the evolution of the manager.”
With new summer signings such as Victor Gyokeres, Eberechi Eze and Martin Zubimendi, and a strong start to the season, Arsenal’s chances of winning are high. Their nearest rival, Liverpool, struggled to hit the same high notes as they did in last year's season. Although the season is far from over, this strong start and new editions to the team sets up for a prom
With an abundance of things happening both on and off the pitch, the question the fans are asking is will Arsenal finally be able to win the title after 21 years? Patrick Vieria, a former Arsenal player, states “you have to believe that Arsenal will be competitive and will be there to fight until the end because the players they managed to bring will put the quality of the team in a different level.”