After Arsenal lost to Liverpool in Philadelphia in the final match of their preseason tour last summer, manager Mikel Arteta sat at a small table with assistant Albert Stuivenberg and captain Martin Ødegaard having a late meal.
The rest of the squad was spread across a canteen area at Lincoln Financial Field, some grabbing food and others preparing for the security and passport checks about to take place to save time at the airport ahead of their flight back to London. Mohamed Salah had scored in a 2-1 Liverpool win that left Arteta ruing missed chances, saying afterward: "When you're in those spaces, [it is about] putting the ball in the net."
However, Arteta cut a relaxed figure at dinner. Ødegaard and Arteta shared a couple of jokes, finished their meals and headed for the exit. There was no indication the Gunners were concerned by Liverpool's formative shape under Arne Slot. Buoyed by a 2023-24 campaign in which the Gunners scored a club-record 91 Premier League goals and amassed 89 points, Arteta had told ESPN a month or so earlier that the stats said Arsenal should have won the title.
Arsenal opted against moving for another striker after Benjamin Sesko signed a new contract to remain at RB Leipzig. The Gunners were prepared to wait and assess their options later in the season, confident they were just small adjustments away from their first title since 2004.
Fast-forward to January, and that same confidence in their existing options made Arsenal decide against paying the £60 million asking price for Ollie Watkins. Sources told ESPN that the Gunners bid £40 million but refused to go any higher. Some now come to view that decision as a £20 million call that may have cost them the Premier League title, especially given Arsenal drew 14 games across the campaign -- only Everton (15) amassed more -- and they were so often guilty of that same profligacy Arteta highlighted after losing to Liverpool in Philadelphia.
Arsenal finished as runners-up for the third consecutive campaign and reached the semifinals of the Champions League for the first time since 2009. It was one step forward in Europe but at least one step back domestically. This is the story of how it came to pass.
Young players come in but transfer chief quits
Arteta was determined to leave no stone unturned in the pursuit of what he believed were marginal gains required to win the Premier League.
The club's preseason began early in July with a mini get-together for players not involved in Euro 2024 or the Copa América, inviting players' friends and families to Marbella, Spain, with the aim of guarding against fitness drop-off and improving togetherness.
Sources also told ESPN that once the season began, training sessions were notably more intense this time around. Detailed weekly plans were nothing new, but Arteta had left the players with less spare time and more instructions to follow. Sources said that at the opening game of the season, a 2-0 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers on Aug. 17, Arteta had insisted on seven analysts taking up space in the Emirates Stadium gantry -- an increase from the year before.
The departure of Vinai Venkatesham as chief executive at the end of the 2023-24 season had led to Richard Garlick's appointment as the club's managing director. Garlick had the option to move seats in the director's box after changing jobs, but sources said that superstition led him to stay put even though he could have moved a row forward.
Internally, plans were underway to be more aggressive with the club's academy, committing more funds and resources on signing top young talent. Sources also told ESPN that Arteta was "given a nudge" to create a clearer pathway for academy players. Ethan Nwaneri and Myles Lewis-Skelly were slowly integrated into the first team while Fabio Vieira, a £34 million signing from FC Porto in 2022, was allowed to go out on loan. There wasn't quite a siege mentality, but Arteta's determination to control the message intensified.
The 42-year-old has never been forthcoming with team news -- that, of course, is his prerogative -- but sources told ESPN he was particularly evasive when it came to news of Ødegaard's ankle injury, suffered on international duty with Norway in September. Arteta repeatedly claimed in news conferences there was a lack of clarity over the severity of the injury, yet sources say the early scan results indicated an expected absence of six to eight weeks. Perhaps reluctant to confirm the first major injury setback of the campaign, Arteta would talk only about the midfielder being sidelined for "a while" and "hopefully not months." As it was, Ødegaard returned to action after seven weeks.
The night before playing Liverpool at home in late October, Arsenal trained at Emirates Stadium rather than at their London Colney base. Sources told ESPN that among the reasons for this was to keep as quiet as possible that both Jurriën Timber and Bukayo Saka had recovered from injury and would start the match. However, the sense of togetherness suffered a significant setback when sporting director Edu suddenly quit the club in November, shortly before the executive team was due to fly to Los Angeles to meet with owners Kroenke Sports Enterprises to plan the next two transfer windows.
Edu's departure created a significant problem for the club's hierarchy, triggering a three-month search for his successor. Sources told ESPN that the club interviewed seven candidates and was impressed by the field. Andrea Berta's desire to move to England, and specifically to Arsenal, was a compelling factor, alongside his wealth of contacts and experience after 12 years at Atlético Madrid.
An issue the Gunners had to iron out was precisely how the structure would work given Edu and Arteta reported in separately to Venkatesham when he was chief executive. One source told ESPN there might have been potential candidates deterred by the level of influence Arteta has and how disruptive it could be for a sporting director to sit above the Spaniard when the club had operated a more collaborative approach with Edu. The dynamic of Berta's relationship with Arteta will be interesting to watch.
Mikel Arteta insists the board will back his plans for Arsenal in the summer transfer window.
Closer to home, Arteta cast admiring glances at the atmospheres created at other grounds -- most obviously Liverpool's Anfield and Newcastle United's St James' Park -- and charged staff with making Emirates Stadium a more raucous environment. Big-game prematch hype videos on social media are now customary, but in November, the club began experimenting with other methods to improve the connection between supporters and the team.
When Arsenal faced Nottingham Forest at home on Nov. 23, stadium announcer Peter Mujuzi read out only the first name of the goal scorer, encouraging the chant to sing the second name. This worked particularly well when Bukayo Saka opened the scoring after just 15 minutes. The following month, Arsenal's lineup was read out before the game against Manchester United with just the first names. The stadium PA also began fading out prematch anthem "North London Forever" at kickoff in the expectation fans would sing it as the match started, similar to Liverpool fans with "You'll Never Walk Alone."
Sources also said staff noticed an increase in internal email correspondence since Garlick replaced Venkatesham, with more regular updates on club matters designed to foster closer understanding.
Attacking injuries expose decision not to sign striker
By Christmas Day, Arsenal were in third place -- six points behind Liverpool, who had a game in hand -- but spirits were still high. The team had their Christmas dinner on Dec. 23 with four days until their next game. One source joked that Arteta "had half of Mallorca" over with him to spend time together at the training ground. The Gunners boss had the club's dog, Win, on Christmas Day 2023, but this time goalkeeper David Raya won the prize of taking the chocolate Labrador home to spend the festive season with his own dog, an XL bully named Goku.
However, it was an unhappy Christmas for Saka, who had learned just a few days earlier that he would require hamstring surgery. Sources said he underwent the procedure on Christmas Eve and spent most of the following week with one leg up at home. Arteta was conscious of criticism in some quarters that he had overworked Saka during the first half of the campaign, and sources said that instead of undergoing commercial work, which would have entailed a trip overseas, the Arsenal boss intervened and insisted the player went away on holiday with his family.
Despite the injury situation, Arsenal entered the January window with no plans to make major additions. Sources said the November meeting in L.A. concluded with a decision to wait until next summer unless there were further setbacks.
That is precisely what happened next. Gabriel Jesus suffered a knee ligament injury, and the club confirmed Jan. 14 that he would undergo surgery. Jesus had impressed Arteta in preseason, with many at the club believing he would step up this year, so the news came as a major blow. The mood consequently shifted, and Arteta became increasingly forthright in his view the squad needed strengthening. However, the possibilities of signing Sesko from Leipzig, Viktor Gyökeres from Sporting CP, or Alexander Isak from Newcastle were remote.
It was only when Aston Villa, concerned about Profit and Sustainability Rules compliance, approached Arsenal with around a week left in the window that a viable opportunity presented itself. Ollie Watkins was now available for £60 million. An Arsenal fan who was proven in the Premier League and compatible with Arteta's style, Watkins seemingly fit the bill. Sources said the Gunners made an offer of £40 million, which was rejected. The Gunners pondered a response, and in the meantime, Villa transferred another striker, Jhon Durán, to Al Nassr for around £65 million. One source told ESPN, although this has been disputed, that Villa then upped their asking price to Watkins for £90 million, at which point Arsenal withdrew.
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta speaks ahead of the visit of Bournemouth to the Emirates in the Premier League.
Gunners hit high point in Champions League
The February break in Dubai was a chance to reset, regroup and refresh. There were detailed touches: players received a personalized coffee on their first day with latte art of their faces. Former midfielder Mohamed Elneny, who left the club in June to join Emirati side Al Jazira, was also invited back to spend time with the group.
But the feel-good factor evaporated when Kai Havertz suffered a season-ending hamstring injury after blocking a shot in training. Local supporters had been invited in to watch the session, so news of his setback spread almost immediately. It was a hammer blow for Arteta, who just a few days earlier had posited the idea that Havertz could play every game for the rest of the season.
Having not strengthened last summer or in January, Arsenal were forced to improvise. Midfielder Mikel Merino began playing through the middle, more because he could replicate the physical work Havertz did off the ball than for his attacking prowess. Saka was one of those players who wanted to step up during this difficult period after returning from injury, asking to face the media ahead of their Champions League quarterfinal tie against Real Madrid.
The superstitious streak continued. After joining the club in March, Berta bought the two men who led the search -- Garlick and executive vice chair Tim Lewis -- silk ties, made in Naples, as a gift. Arsenal executives already had company-issued red ties, so this created a matchday dilemma: wear the gift or continue adhering to the standard attire.
Sources told ESPN that Garlick wore Berta's tie for the quarterfinal first-leg win over Real Madrid -- a 2-0 triumph that ranks as one of the finest nights at Emirates Stadium. For the second leg, a famous 3-1 win at the Bernabéu, Garlick and Lewis opted for one each between them.
On the night of the semifinal first leg against Paris Saint-Germain, former manager Arsène Wenger returned to the Emirates. Sources said he has an open invitation, but he has only taken it up on rare occasions. But Arsenal's luck ran out. PSG proved too much over two tight games, and they were unable to maintain any sense of momentum to pressure Liverpool in the Premier League run-in. They won nine of their final 20 matches of the season across all competitions following Havertz's injury. It is the first season since 1923-24 that Arsenal haven't had a player score 10 or more goals in a league campaign. Nobody managed more than Havertz's nine.
Injuries were undoubtedly a factor, and the Gunners' primary attacking conduit -- Ødegaard, Saka and Ben White combining to overload down the righthand side -- was essentially ravaged for a large portion of the campaign. The trio started just eight league games together over the course of the season, and the effect on the team's fluidity cannot be underestimated. Ødegaard's effectiveness upon returning from injury was inevitably compromised by the lack of natural runners ahead of him.
There are other areas requiring improvement -- Martín Zubimendi is expected to arrive from Real Sociedad to strengthen the midfield while a wide forward and a backup goalkeeper are among their targets -- but the No. 1 priority is clear: Sign a striker.
For a club and a manager always seeking lessons from history, there is one encouraging omen: The last time Arsenal finished second three times in succession, they won the double the following year.