By Rikhav S. ‘26
At this point in time Arsenal FC have three games left to go in their Premier League season. A season that could ultimately see the club capturing their first league title since the Invincibles 20 years ago (when Arsenal finished the whole Premier League campaign without a single loss). The potential league title would be a fitting achievement to mark the legitimacy of this new era at Arsenal – an era that will most likely see the club near the top of European soccer for years to come. With all that being said, it is time to recap Arsenal’s almost completed 2023/24 season.
Summer 2023:
This past summer was a vital period for Arsenal. Coming off the back of a disappointing end to the previous campaign, where Arsenal ultimately saw their title charge collapse at the hands of some frustrating results, it was essential that the club used the summer transfer window to improve their squad. Arsenal’s first move was signing Kai Havertz from Chelsea for a reported 65 million pounds. Havertz was seen as a midfield replacement for fan favorite Granit Xhaka, who left for Bayer Leverkusen during the transfer window. The second player Arsenal signed in the summer was Jurrien Timber, a defender from the Dutch side, Ajax, for 38 million pounds. The signing of Timber was very exciting, as the player is a young and versatile prospect out of the Netherlands. Arsenal’s third signing of the summer was by far the most monumental, as they signed English midfielder, Declan Rice, from West Ham for a club-record fee of 105 million pounds. This was a statement signing from Arsenal, as they beat out the reigning Premier League Champions, Manchester City, for the player. Not only that, but this signing showed that Mikel Arteta (Arsenal’s Manager) and Edu Gaspar (Arsenal’s Sporting Director) had the full financial backing of the board to pursue their needs. The last signing of the window came as a shock to everyone, as Arsenal signed Brentford’s goalkeeper, David Raya, on loan with an option to buy. Nobody expected this move, as Aaron Ramsdale, Arsenal’s goalkeeper, was beloved by the club and fans. Overall, Arsenal did their necessary work in the summer transfer window and put themselves in a great position for the upcoming 2023/24 campaign.
Premier League in 2023:
Arsenal started the 2023/24 season with heartbreak, as new signing Jurrien Timber tore his ACL halfway through the first game. Nonetheless, the club began their campaign in solid form, winning four out of their opening five games, with their only non-win coming from a frustrating 2-2 draw with Fulham. The most exciting game of the opening five came in a 3-1 win against Manchester United, where the club’s record signing Declan Rice scored the go-ahead goal in the 96th minute. This was followed by another stoppage-time goal, this time from Gabriel Jesus in the 101st minute, sending Arsenal’s home crowd into pure joy. Following this, Arsenal faced a huge test in their schedule from September 24th-October 21st: in this 4-game run, Arsenal would have to match up against Tottenham, Manchester City, and Chelsea (3 of the Premier League’s “Big Six”). A disappointing 2-2 draw against North London rivals, Tottenham, in the North London Derby would then be followed by a routine 4-0 win against Bournemouth. Arsenal’s next game would be the biggest test of them all, as they would look to get their first Premier League win versus Man City since 2015. And that they did, as Gabriel Martinelli gave Arsenal the lead with almost no time to spare, in the 86th minute, marking a monumental moment for the club. This was possibly Arsenal’s most notable result of the season in hindsight.
After this match, they would draw 2-2 with London rivals, Chelsea, in a match that saw Arsenal pull off a late comeback due to goals from Declan Rice and Leandro Trossard. On November 4th, controversy struck. Arsenal would lose 1-0 to Newcastle, due to a goal that by no means should have been allowed. After this defeat, the club would bounce back strongly, winning their next four matches, with one of their wins coming off of a 97th-minute winner by Declan Rice against Luton Town, with the last kick of the game. As one can probably tell, Arsenal definitely got their money’s worth with Declan Rice. On December 9th, Arsenal would lose to Aston Villa at Villa Park, a side coached by Arsenal’s former manager, Unai Emery. On December 23rd, Arsenal would travel to Anfield to face Liverpool, a ground where they haven’t won since 2012. While Arsenal did not win this game, they got a solid 1-1 draw thanks to a header from their center-back, Gabriel Magalhães. In the last two games of 2023, everything went wrong for the club. Arsenal would experience back-to-back losses at the hands of West Ham and Fulham. It was a horrendous end to a pretty good half of their season.
Premier League in 2024:
Following the shocking end to 2023, Arsenal needed to bounce back in order to have any remaining chance to challenge for the Premier League title. At this point in the season, it looked to be a 3-horse race with Man City and Liverpool also involved. Arsenal started 2024 with incredible form. The club won the opening 8 games of 2024, with notable victories coming against Crystal Palace (5-0), Liverpool (3-1), West Ham (0-6), Burnley (0-5), Newcastle (4-1), and Sheffield United (0-6). The 8th match of this run was an exciting 2-1 win, thanks to a Kai Havertz header in the 86th minute. Following their 8-match winning streak, they faced English giants, Man City, for the final time of the season. Unable to afford a defeat, Arsenal came home with a solid 0-0 result. On April 14th, Arsenal would lose again to Aston Villa (2-0), meaning they could not afford to slip up for the remainder of the season. Since then they have gone on to win three games in a row, against Wolves, Chelsea, and Tottenham. The Chelsea game was especially satisfying, as former Chelsea player and recent Arsenal signing, Kai Havertz scored two goals in a 5-0 win. The Tottenham game, called the North London Derby, was very extremely chaotic, as Arsenal scored three goals in the first half (due to an own goal, and goals from Bukaya Saka and Kai Havertz). In the second half, however, Arsenal would concede two goals, leading to an incredibly nerve-wracking end to the match, which Arsenal would see through with a win. That leads us to the present, with the title race now being Arsenal vs. Manchester City, as Liverpool have slipped up in their past couple games. Arsenal currently sit on 80 points with three games to go, and Man City have 79 with 4 remaining fixtures. So with Manchester City having the mathematical edge, Arsenal must win their remaining matches of the season (against Bournemouth, Manchester United, and Everton), as they can only hope that City drop points.
Champions League:
The 2023/24 season marked Arsenal’s first time in the Champions League since 2016/17. Arsenal’s 2016/17 Champions League campaign ended in embarrassing fashion, as they got knocked out by Bayern München with a score of 10-2 on aggregate. Coming into the Champions League this season with a newer and younger squad, Arsenal needed to make a statement that all of Europe could witness. Arsenal were placed into Group B for the group stage, which consisted of Netherlands’ PSV Eindhoven, France’s Lens, and Spain’s Sevilla. On September 20, 2023, in Arsenal’s first Champions League game since 2017, they destroyed PSV 4-0, in front of a joyous Emirates Stadium, with Bukayo Saka, Leandro Trossard, Gabriel Jesus, and club captain, Martin Ødegaard on the score sheet. This would be followed by a disappointing 2-1 loss away at Lens, whose home crowd created a wild atmosphere. Arsenal bounced back with back-to-back victories against Sevilla, winning 2-1 and then 2-0. In their next game, Arsenal redeemed themselves with a 6-0 obliteration of Lens, in which they were up 5-0 in the first half, with Havertz, Jesus, Saka, Martinelli, Ødegaard, and Jorginho all scoring. This game mathematically secured Arsenal’s place at the top of their group with one group-stage game to go, meaning they had qualified for the Champions League Round of 16. They finished the group stage with a 1-1 draw at PSV.
In the Round of 16, Arsenal were met with the challenge of the Portuguese giants, Porto. In the first leg of the tie, Arsenal traveled to Portugal, where they played an intense and almost frustrating 90 minutes of soccer. To cap off this frustration, Porto’s Wenderson Galeno scored a magnificent but heartbreaking goal in the 94th minute from outside of the box. This 1-0 defeat to Porto meant that Arsenal must recover in the second leg if they wanted to play in the Champions League Quarter Finals. In a nervous Emirates Stadium, Martin Ødegaard played an incredible ball to Leandro Trossard, who slotted it home in the 41st minute to give Arsenal a 1-0 lead in the game, which leveled the score on aggregate to 1-1. At the end of 90 minutes, the aggregate score remained a tie, sending the game into extra time. With no team scoring after 30 minutes of extra time, Arsenal would have to beat Porto in a penalty shootout to book their spot in the next round. Arsenal would win the penalty shootout 4-2, with Ødegaard, Havertz, Saka, and Rice scoring Arsenal’s penalties in that order. However, the true hero of the shootout was Arsenal’s new goalkeeper, David Raya, who saved two of Porto’s penalties which ultimately won Arsenal the game. The Emirates crowd erupted as Arsenal won their place into the Champions League Quarter Finals at the hands of David Raya.
Arsenal were through to the Champions League Quarter Finals for the first time since 2009/10. And of course, Arsenal were set to play none other than Bayern München, who they had lost to 5-1 in each of the last three times the clubs met. The first leg, which was played at the Emirates, ended in a 2-2 draw, with Bukayo Saka and Leandro Trossard scoring for Arsenal, and a familiar face in Harry Kane scoring one of Bayern’s goals. Arsenal really hoped to win this game, however they had to settle for a draw. There was still all to play for in the second leg in Germany. Unfortunately, Bayern beat Arsenal 1-0 thanks to a 63rd-minute Joshua Kimmich goal, in a game in which Arsenal never seemed to be in control. This marked the end of Arsenal’s Champions League campaign, and while it was not what the fans or club had hoped for, it gave many confidence in Arsenal’s future. Arsenal will most definitely be amongst one of Europe’s top clubs for years to come, and can hopefully secure their first-ever Champions League Trophy sooner rather than later.
Overall:
Overall, Arsenal’s season has been incredible to watch. Whether they win the Premier League or not, the 2023/24 campaign has been full of many highs (as well as some unbearable lows). Throughout this season, Arsenal have demonstrated so much maturity that they were lacking come the end of last season’s title charge. The future looks so bright for Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal, as they look to be perennial challengers domestically, as well as in Europe. Currently, Arsenal have scored the most goals, as well as conceded the least goals in the Premier League this season, with those numbers being amongst the best throughout Europe. With such a well-rounded and talented squad, as well as an incredible coaching staff and Sporting Director who have the full trust and confidence of the board, Arsenal are in great shape for the future. Many trophies may be on their way to North London in the coming years for Arsenal (and not for Tottenham!).
The Gryphon Gazette 
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