Arsenal haven’t won back-to-back English titles since the 1930s. Not under Arsene Wenger’s Invincibles, not during any of the club’s previous title-winning eras. That specific piece of history is what Mikel Arteta is now chasing down, and he’s not being subtle about the scale of his ambition. “It’s certainly the ambition of the club and the owners to be the best club in the world,” he told Sky Sports this week, days before Arsenal open their title defense against promoted Coventry on Friday.
For the first time in 22 years, Arsenal begin a Premier League season as the league’s dominant force, with Manchester City’s Pep Guardiola era over after his resignation last season. Arteta, who worked under Guardiola at City before taking the Arsenal job in 2019, isn’t shy about measuring his team against that standard, six Premier League titles across Guardiola’s City reign, and pushing his own squad to match it.
“In order to do that, you need the best facilities, the best stadium, the best supporters, and you need the best squad and the best players in the world,” Arteta said. “That’s what we try to build with the actual players that we have, and with the players that we want to sign to make the difference for Arsenal.”
Arsenal’s Champions League final defeat to Paris Saint-Germain on penalties last season still lingers, and Arteta has folded that disappointment directly into his message to the squad. “When I look into the eyes of my players, I see that fire, that desire and the will to be better every single day,” he said, even as he’s made clear that domestic dominance, not just European glory, remains his top priority.
Arsenal have already backed up the talk what with Sunday’s 3-0 demolition of Manchester City in the Community Shield, powered by new signings Bruno Guimaraes and Christos Tzolis, looked like a statement rather than a preseason formality. And Arteta isn’t done adding to the squad. A deal for Aston Villa’s Ezri Konsa is reportedly close, while Atletico Madrid striker Julian Alvarez has also been linked.
For Coventry manager Frank Lampard, that firepower makes for an unenviable start to life back in the top flight after 25 years away. But he’s far from alone in facing that problem. City have replaced Guardiola with Enzo Maresca, Liverpool moved on from Arne Slot in favor of Andoni Iraola, and Chelsea handed the reins to Xabi Alonso, three clubs all working through transitions of their own while Arsenal, seven points clear of City last season, look increasingly settled.
Manchester United, third under Michael Carrick last year, have taken a notably quiet approach in the transfer market by comparison. None of the chasing pack looks fully assembled yet, which is exactly the gap Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard sounds eager to exploit. “This year we want more,” he said. “We want to do it again in the league and then there are the other trophies.”
