Did Arsenal have a ‘defining moment’ in their Premier League title win? | OneFootball

The Arsenal celebrations continue, with one eye on a particularly ‘dull’ game at Selhurst Park, but how will these champions be remembered?

There is also a Liverpool fan who really wants Andoni Iraola.

Send your thoughts to theeditor@football365.com.

The Celebration Police

Can someone please make sure the celebration police are at Selhurst Park this Sunday. I think Arsenal are going to be celebrating like they’ve won the league again.

It would also be great to not hear from Stewie Griffin for all of next season.

Arsenal are good actually

All titles are great titles. No exceptions.

There was no Pires-style player-of-the-year performance, no statement victory, no defining moment to hang your hat on.

But maybe that’s the point.

As football becomes ever more optimised, refined and resistant to the neat narratives we impose on it, we might have to get used to the best teams simply being the ones that do the job best — and not much else.

The problem isn’t that Arsenal aren’t great champions — they clearly are.

The problem is us, and a game that might be slowly racing away from the stories we tell ourselves about it. Bryan

Arsenal did it! I never doubted them 😛

Everyone has gone mad. I’ve already hugged a random fan at the train station.

22 years of hurt over.

No more mails from Stewie now either! I’m kinda sad about it though cos ever since I’ve been reading this site (2007),  he’s been a staple of the mailbox. But, like the late- Wenger era, the quality of what he’d produced these last few seasons wasn’t at the level of his peak (some his mails in the late noughties and early 10’s were so funny but now he’s not at those levels). Feels like the end of an era, with his enforced mailbox retirement.

Time for the CL 💪 Izzy (no longer a pessimist), London 

If you think Arsenal have been dull this season. Imagine Sundays game at Palace. Neither team has anything left to play for in the league but both have big European finals in a matter of days. If anyone runs, never mind makes a tackles I’ll be stunned.

Still, who cares how we won it.

Champions!!!!! Sarah, Arsenal (I do trust the process)

Yesssssss!!!!!!!! So amazing, so happy. And yes it’s deserved! Only downside is to not be celebrating with my gooner grandad who would have f***ing loved Declan saying “it’s not done yet”. Kyle, Ilkley 

The Arteta statue

Somehow. I’m picking up the chisel and mallet from Screwfix first thing in the morning. TyA, Essex

Warning: Read this only if you want a mid-life crisis

​Hi,

​If you’re in the mood to feel ancient today, I’ve been looking at the history of Premier League title droughts. Nothing reminds you of the terrifying passage of time quite like looking at what the world was doing when Arsenal, Liverpool, and Manchester United started their famous dry spells versus when they finally ended them.

​Prepare to feel your joints ache:

​Arsenal (2004 – 2026): The last time Arsenal won the league before tonight, Patrick Vieira was anchoring the midfield, and Arsenal fans weren’t yet universally despised on social media because social media literally didn’t exist. Back then, sending a text required aggressively tapping the ‘7’ key four times just to type the letter ‘S’—which is about the same level of patience required to sit through twenty-two years of “Arsène Knows,” the banter-era Emirates transition, and endless fourth-place finishes. In 2004, Spurs fans could still boldly claim they were “a bigger club” without the room bursting into immediate laughter. Tonight, the Gunners finally won it in an era where the kids who were literally born on the day of the Invincibles parade are now old enough to buy a pint in the pub, and “bottling it” has officially been passed down to someone else.

​Liverpool (1990 – 2020): When Liverpool won the old First Division in 1990, the internet hadn’t been invented yet, meaning nobody on earth had ever heard the phrase “Next year is definitely our year.” If you missed the classified football results on the telly, your only hope was staring blankly at the Ceefax screen for twenty minutes waiting for page 302 to cycle back around. For three decades, Liverpool fans had to rely on grainy VHS tapes to prove to teenagers that “Yes, we really used to rule Europe, I promise.” By the time Jürgen Klopp finally broke the 30-year curse, we were living in a sci-fi world where people order half-and-half scarves on smartphones, VAR spends five minutes drawing pixelated lines to ruin a perfectly good limbs-everywhere celebration, and the club finally lifted the trophy in an empty stadium during a global lockdown—proving God has a sense of humour.

​Manchester United (1967 – 1993): For the ultimate reality check, look at United’s 26-year gap. When they won the league in 1967, colour TV had just launched, meaning most of the country watched George Best tear full-backs apart in various shades of grey. By the time Sir Alex Ferguson broke the spell in ’93, fans were watching games on Sky satellite dishes, and a nerdy little experiment called the “World Wide Web” had just been made public. United literally managed to pack a shocking relegation, a decades-long scouse dominance era, and the entire birth of modern capitalism into a single drought. In 1967, a “transfer rumor” was something you overheard at the pub; by 1993, the era of the multi-million-pound superstar was born, completely rewriting how the game was played.

​Basically, entire civilisations have risen and fallen, and technology has gone from black-and-white television valves to literal artificial intelligence, all while these teams were trying to get their hands on a trophy.

​I’m off to get a knee replacement.

​Best A Time Traveller Stuck in Stockley Park (Where a five-minute review feels like an eternity anyway)

Two minds

I’m in two minds about Arsenal winning the league:

1 (childish) mind – hate it because I can’t dismiss their victory because they cheated. 2 (slightly more mature mind) – they deserved it and did it the ‘right way’.

There’s probably a third mind thinking they deserved to win, but only by ruthlessly exploiting the rules.

However, I have barely the intelligence to keep 2 minds in play, and begrudgingly respect the ability to win at all costs.

So, fair play Arsenal.  Hopefully Liverpool can have a better run at the league in a few years. Aidan, Lfc (hopefully we don’t ship 5 goals against Brentford)

Disgraceful refereeing, again

Earlier this month Spurs fans celebrated the 3 year anniversary of when Spurs last had an away penalty in the premier league. Tonight’s war crime decision was the Van de Ven non-penalty decision which was given about 5 seconds until it was waved away, just like the Maddison penalty decision versus Leeds.

Both penalties. Both waved away without any care when social media proves them both really easily.

Anyway, well played PGMOL, game changers 💪 Anon

My money would be on Iraola

Just watching the opening quarter of the City vs Bournemouth game and everything about this Bournemouth side is wonderful to watch. Making City look pretty pedestrian. And if they get the 5th CL spot will thoroughly deserve it – over a mostly moribund Liverpool/

I mention this because of all the discussion around Slot, and if he goes, who should replace him?

I listened to a couple of podcasts where ex-players in particular were all saying Liverpool missed the boat in not getting Alonso – especially as he is a ‘generational’ talent. Not quite sure what that means. But it would be fair to say there is some great manager talent around – talent that might fit the Liverpool model far better. Alonso did do brilliantly at Leverkusen, and while Liverpool bought two former players in Wirtz and Frimpong and doesn’t seem to be getting a tune out of them – especially the way Alonso did – it doesn’t mean Alonso would – in this current squad. If anything, it was Xhaka that made Leverkusen tick – in the same way he is helping Sunderland.

And let’s face it, Slot’s Liverpool blew away Alonso’s Real Madrid this year, too.

But Iraala seems to have developed a team that withstands the loss of their best players, maximizes everyone in his squad, plays on the front foot, is not cowed by the opposition, and forces opponents to put in extreme effort to win. Just about everything we haven’t seen from Liverpool this year. While he lacks big-name, big-team experience, he has Prem experience.

Of all those mooted as great options, Iraola is likely the best, as it’s not likely they would convince Luis Enrique or Vincent Kompany or any of the other names mentioned, and Glasner’s style would, like Alonso’s, not be a fit either.

At this point, when the same pundits are suggesting the way to get back in the fans’ good books would be to play both Salah and Ngumoha in the last game of the season, it says it all about their deep analysis. Right now, I am sure Slot is just hoping City overcome this Bournemouth side to make the last game moot. But at this point, it’s looking like a draw. Paul McDevitt

Hong Kong Phooey

Hong Kong Ian (a bit of perspective and research goes a long way) LFC appears to be confused on a number of levels. And that’s ignoring the ludicrous suggestion that Liverpool are a bigger club than United, as we all know that’s nonsense (arguably slightly more successful or unsuccessful depending on your metrics, but it’s debatable).

He has either seen into the future or slipped into a Slot-induced coma when he mentions Carragher critiquing their first game of the season against “Ipswich”. Regardless, Carragher may well have criticised the defending but he didn’t suggest they needed to sign a defender. In fact, he said “People say they need a centre-back – a centre-back doesn’t fix that. He just takes Konate’s place. It’s about the make-up of the team with two attacking full-backs and a No 10 who is more interested in getting on the ball than defending like [Dominik] Szoboszlai was last season”. So the original point still stands re Captain Hindsight Carragher changing his tune.

HK Ian then goes onto defend his team’s honour whilst critiquing United’s season, fair enough. But then he commits the cardinal sin of confusing Football 365 for a Liverpool fanzine when he inanely concludes, “Focus on your own team, unless you want to be considered a smaller club more concerned with your neighbours travails than your own success”. For shame Ian – if we all just focused on our own teams, this place would be much less interesting. Garey (my club’s bigger than yours) Vance, MUFC

Camo? Pants

Southampton should’ve been kicked out of the playoffs long before any ‘Spygate’ decision purely because grown adults turned up to a football match, holding a pair of binoculars, dressed in camouflage gear and ghillie suits.

Imagine explaining to your family that you spent your weekend disguised as a hedge because of a football spying joke. Ant MUFC (still thankful the Premier League has been spared a year of broadcasters shamelessly prostituting themselves for Ryan Reynolds content)

Why Palmer must go…to America

Hi Ed,

Palmer played in the final of the Club World Cup and dismantled the vaunted PSG defense.  While this match was perhaps of dubious merit as a competition, it did test certain players under a blazing sun in high humidity in New Jersey. He thrived.

The American summer is highly unusual, nothing quite like it in Spain or Italy.  Just that ability to show up with impact in a final should mean that Palmer must go, and at some point must get to play. He’s proven to be physically adaptable to special muggy sweaty swampy conditions in places like New Jersey in the Summer.

Best Dan McG LFC

Pep talk

I think with the ten years Pep Guardiola had spent at Manchester City I think he would be above Sir Alex Ferguson.  20 trophies including Trebles and A quadruple is not easy to accomplish in such a short time remember we a re talking about 10 years not 26 years.

Pep Guardiola also revolutionized English football having every club in the land playing his type of football, another level Ferguson had never reached in 26 years, so in my opinion Pep is the greatest manager the country had ever seen. Oneil

Fan service

If there was an award for Mail of the Season, then Tom Parkinson would surely be the recipient without a doubt.  A stunning read and an honest view into the state of football at this point in time, which shows no signs of stopping any time soon (if ever).

I expect that Tom has experienced this far sooner than most football fans based on his support being for a historically successful team.  Sadly, we have seen and are seeing similar moves being made at Villa Park where fans have been relocated from seats they have held for years to accomodate a wealthier set of clientele which is of course more attractive to the club in terms of revenue.  Back in 2023, the Holte Suite changed into The Lower Grounds – a matchday “experience” rather than somewhere for fans to meet up and have a pint before going to their seats to watch the team.  The club used to advertise it before matches and at half-time, but would be drowned out by the crowd who would loudly boo to show their displeasure.  This isn’t advertised during match days anymore despite the offering still being available.

I’m fortunate enough to sit in the Holte End which is pretty much untouchable based on its history and have sat next to (mostly) the same people for around 30 years or so, which is probably why Tom’s e-mail struck such a chord with me.  You do end up talking to those people as if they’re family that you’ve known your whole life and grown up with, taking an interest in what’s going on in their worlds.  It’s a shame that the clubs don’t seem to recognise this social connection and  instead prioritise money above all else, but one of the commenters in BTL correctly identified that clubs want more money, players see the bigger pots of money and want a bigger share of it, fans cry out for new signings and the TV deals happily feed it all.  I guess in a sense that makes us as fans as guilty as anyone, but it’s still a shitter of a situation.

A couple of friends of mine have started supporting Boldmere St Michaels and attending their matches, maybe I should join them as you’d be in no doubt how much lower league clubs would value your business and support more than the behemoths at the top of the table, who are all too happy to watch you leave and replace you with someone whose pockets make a bit more of a jangly noise than your own. Jeff G, West Brom Villan (Fortunate enough to remember the good old days of 90’s football before it was sullied with greed)

The crumbling credibility of English football

Dear Football365’rs,

Eluding to that wonderful piece by Trump yesterday……the longer the Manchester City case drags on, the more corrosive it becomes — not just for City, but for the credibility of English football itself.

This is not a club with a spotless history of open co-operation with authorities. Quite the opposite.

The Premier League charges themselves include repeated allegations that City failed to co-operate with investigators between 2018 and 2023. Before that, UEFA attempted to sanction City in 2020 with a two-year Champions League ban over alleged Financial Fair Play breaches. That punishment was later overturned at CAS, but crucially, not because City were declared wholly innocent of every allegation. Some accusations were deemed time-barred, while others lacked sufficient evidence under the required standard.

In other words: technicalities and evidential limitations played a major role.

And yet City supporters continue pretending the CAS ruling was some complete exoneration handed down from heaven. It wasn’t.. You were guilty and had your elite, and expensive, litigation teams slow or complicate proceedings in a number of perfectly legal ways… including –

Now compare City’s conduct with other clubs:

Even clubs later cleared have generally engaged openly with the process rather than launching all-out legal warfare against the regulators themselves.

City, meanwhile, have assembled one of the most formidable legal operations football has ever seen. Lord Pannick KC — one of Britain’s most elite barristers — has represented the club, alongside armies of specialist commercial and sports lawyers. They are entirely entitled to do so, of course. But ordinary fans are also entitled to notice the pattern: challenge jurisdiction, challenge procedure, challenge timing, challenge disclosure, challenge everything.

Delay is not accidental in modern litigation. It is often strategy.

Which brings us to the elephant in the room: why, 18 months after the hearing concluded, is there still no outcome?

Maybe the case is simply staggeringly complex:

Or maybe everyone involved is quietly getting their ducks lined up before detonating the biggest legal and reputational bomb English football has ever seen.

Because let’s be honest here: Manchester City are not simply a football club in this context. They are tied to Abu Dhabi state wealth, global investment networks and one of Britain’s most strategically valuable Gulf relationships.

That does not prove political interference.

But it absolutely explains why many supporters no longer trust the process to be entirely free from pressure, caution or institutional fear.

Football spent decades telling supporters the game belonged to communities, merit and fair competition.

Now many fans look at this case and see sovereign wealth, geopolitical influence, elite legal shielding and endless delay.

And the longer the silence continues, the louder those suspicions become.