Mikel Arteta stood at his team's training ground in north London and asked his Arsenal players to do something unthinkable in May: throw their negative thoughts into a fire he'd lit for them. It was a small ritual that spoke to something larger—a manager who understands that winning a Premier League title isn't about genius tactics or raw talent alone, but about belief, connection, and the slow, patient work of rebuilding a fractured club.
Arsenal's title victory marks the culmination of a six-year project that began in June 2020 when Arteta told supporters to "trust the process." Six years sounds like a long time. For a club with 14 Premier League titles already in their cabinet, it felt like an eternity. Yet what Arteta and his leadership team have built—often in silence, with strategic signings and youth development rather than splashy summer marquees—represents something rarer than a single season of brilliance: the architecture of sustained excellence.
The fingerprints on this success belong to many hands. Former sporting director Edu assembled a recruitment team including assistant Jason Ayto and technical director James Ellis, both since departed, alongside head of football intelligence Mark Curtis. The impact has been concrete: of Arsenal's top 15 appearance-makers in the Premier League this season, 10 were signings made during Edu's tenure. Richard Garlick, promoted to chief executive in September, backed the rebuilding strategy from his arrival in 2021. Even Josh Kroenke, co-chairman of parent company Kroenke Sports & Entertainment, was present throughout the season at unprecedented levels—flying to London in November to spend time with the women's team after they received the Freedom of Islington, and returning in January after a defeat to Manchester United.
The academy contributed too: Bukayo Saka, Myles Lewis-Skelly, Ethan Nwaneri, and Max Dowman all graduated from Arsenal's youth system to become first-team regulars. This season wasn't flawless. The Gunners lost the Carabao Cup final to Manchester City, a loss Arteta blamed partly on his decision to play goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga—a rare moment where sentiment overrode ruthlessness. They also lost to City in the league, setting up a straight fight for the title that seemed to sharpen rather than dull their focus.
Arteta's methods grew more intuitive as the season progressed. He embraced decisions based on feeling, a stark contrast to his early tenure's calculated precision. Most tellingly, an AI-generated song that names every squad member—which Arteta will only say "came from somewhere"—became an anthem and players' favourite. The song loops his mantra: "make it happen." Having steered Arsenal to the title, he's done exactly that.
Now comes the harder part. With his contract expiring next season, Arteta is in talks to extend his deal, which currently pays him a basic £10m annually plus £5m for Champions League qualification. The expectation is that both he and sporting director Andrea Berta—who was linked with moves to Saudi Arabia—will agree new terms before next season begins. For Arteta, the ambition has never been winning once. It's building a legacy of repetition. On 30 May, when Arsenal face Paris St-Germain in the Champions League final in Budapest, they'll have a chance to call themselves the greatest team in the club's history. The fire still burns.