Mikel Arteta expresses confidence in Arsenal’s trophy-winning potential following strategic summer transfers. He acknowledges the Premier League’s competitiveness and highlights Arsenal’s Champions League ambitions. Arteta emphasizes the club’s hunger for success and commitment to achieving major trophies consistently.
Mikel Arteta is brimming with optimism, asserting that Arsenal's strategic transfer dealings have significantly elevated their prospects of clinching trophies this season. The Gunners invested heavily during the summer transfer window, reportedly spending around £250m to bolster their squad with promising talents such as Viktor Gyokeres, Martin Zubimendi, Noni Madueke, and Eberechi Eze. These additions are expected to inject fresh dynamism and depth into the team, fortifying their challenge for silverware.
Arsenal, a club steeped in tradition and ambition, are yearning to reclaim their status as Premier League champions. Their last triumph dates back to the unforgettable 2003-04 'Invincibles' season. In recent years, they've consistently been in contention, finishing as runners-up in the top-flight for the past three seasons. However, they fell short of dethroning Liverpool in the 2024-25 campaign, trailing by 10 points. This season, they've started strongly, currently occupying second place, just three points behind leaders Liverpool, signaling their intent to maintain relentless pressure in the title race.
Last season, Arsenal also demonstrated their capabilities on the European stage, embarking on a commendable Champions League journey. They progressed to the semi-finals, where they faced a formidable Paris Saint-Germain side. Despite a valiant effort, they succumbed to a 3-1 aggregate defeat against the eventual champions. This experience, however, has fueled their determination to go even further in the competition this season.
Arteta firmly believes that the current squad possesses the requisite depth and quality to compete at the highest level. He emphasized the importance of having players who are not only talented but also eager to represent Arsenal. "It’s been excellent for what we needed and what we wanted to achieve," Arteta told Ally’s Social Club. "We are very lucky players want to come to Arsenal now, and they prefer to go to Arsenal than somewhere else, and this is an unbelievable power as well that we have built and gives us our very best chance."
He acknowledged the intense competition in the Premier League, highlighting the consistently high points tally required to secure the title. "We talked last year about the Premier League, and we’ve been three years there with the amount of points that normally you are the Premier League winner, but the level is somewhere that has never been before, which is great."
Arsenal's recruitment strategy has been significantly enhanced, placing them in a more advantageous position compared to previous years. "In terms of recruitment, we’re in a much better place in terms of the squad last year. We’re trying to do everything that we can."
The Gunners are set to commence their Champions League campaign against Athletic Bilbao, and they are eager to make a resounding start. Last season, they suffered only three defeats in 14 Champions League matches (W9 D2), with all three losses against the finalists, PSG (L2) and Inter (L1). The Opta supercomputer has identified Arsenal as one of the frontrunners in the competition, assigning them a 16% probability of lifting the coveted trophy.
Since Arteta's arrival in December 2019, Arsenal have secured only one trophy, the 2019-20 FA Cup. However, he remains unwavering in his conviction that the team can fulfill the lofty expectations they have set for themselves. "I think we built those expectations [of winning trophies], from where we were and everything that we built; that was the aim," he added.
Arteta stressed the significance of winning major trophies consistently at the elite level. "That was the project and what we want to do – winning major trophies consistently at the elite level. Winning is winning trophies and a lot of things we won throughout this period, changing the culture, making a very clear identity and philosophy of the football club, transmitting an unbelievable feeling to the rest of our supporters, being in the Champions League, working towards the major trophies, winning some trophies… that’s a lot of things."
He concluded by emphasizing the team's hunger for success and their determination to transform their runner-up finishes into championship glory. "But now we want this, from being second three times, there is only one thing which is to win it, and that’s the expectation. And we have to thrive on that with enthusiasm, with an empty tummy, because we don’t have it and we really want it. But understanding that we have to do that by enjoying every single day what we do and how we want to achieve, we can never forget what is going to take us there. It’s about understanding the reason why we do it and what it’s going to give us the highest probability actually to achieve it and do our very best to achieve that."