Arteta learned – Mikel Arteta found out Arsenal were Premier League champions after 22 years while grilling in his garden, leaving London Colney about 20 minutes before Manchester City’s game at Bournemouth ended. He then joined the victorious squad in a London nightclub late
Mikel Arteta didn’t watch Manchester City’s match at Bournemouth when Arsenal were waiting to be confirmed champions. He was in his own back garden instead, building a fire and starting a barbecue, because he said he simply couldn’t stomach the tension.
It was the kind of moment that should have belonged to the Arsenal training ground on a Tuesday night. The squad were at the London Colney base. watching City drop points in the Premier League. the result that confirmed the Gunners as champions after a 22-year drought. Yet Arteta left—and dashed home—about 20 minutes before the match started, admitting his “energy” didn’t feel right.
The message, when it came, didn’t arrive from a screen. His teenage son Gabriel—who plays for the Arsenal Under 18s—broke the news in the garden.
“It’s one of the best feeling I’ve ever had (winning the league),” Arteta said. “I was supposed to be here with the players, and certain staff, because that’s what they wanted. But I couldn’t. Twenty minutes before the game, I had to leave, I couldn’t bring the energy that I wanted.
“I went home, went outside to the garden, started to build some fire and started to do some barbecue. I didn’t watch any of it. I was just hearing noises in the background and the living room, then the magic happened.”
He described how his oldest son opened the garden door, ran toward him, cried, and wrapped him in a hug.
“My oldest son opened the garden door. ran towards me. started to cry. gave me a hug and said ‘We’re champions Daddy’. My other two boys and my wife came over and it was beautiful to see the joy on them. they are always with me. It was magical. A minute later Martin Odegaard was with the video: ‘Where are you?. Come over’.”.
Arteta said he replied: “Enjoy it. See you in a few hours, somewhere in London”.
For the former player and now manager. the decision to step away didn’t come from laziness—it came from a mental fight he’s been trying to solve since Arsenal repeatedly fell short. Arteta said the run of finishing league runners-up for three consecutive seasons left him questioning whether he was “good enough” to help lift major silverware.
“I think the start was tough because I think when you build the club. the team into a zone where the only thing that is left is to win it and then the margin is so small. especially with our competitors. ” he said. “So to play with that (on your) back constantly is not easy. and that’s probably been one of the toughest moments.”.
He pointed back to the conversations inside the club during the season’s build-up—specifically the press conference comments in September and October when the stakes were framed with brutal clarity.
“We remember the conversation at the press conference in September and October: ‘If you guys don’t win, the league is over’, and it’s still eight or nine months to play,” he said. “So to play with that (on your) back constantly is not easy.”
That pressure, Arteta argued, became a test of more than tactics. He said Arsenal showed “perseverance” and the ability to stay composed when doubt creeps in.
“We showed a very important value not only in sport but in life as well, which is perseverance,” he said. “That is to be resilient. to be composed in moments when people are doubting. to be vulnerable because I’ve asked that question to myself: ‘Am I good enough to lead this team. this club. these players to win a major trophy?’”.
He said he kept searching for validation and for a way to bring his players through.
“Until you don’t do it, you cannot validate yourself. And I thought about many ways. What is the best way to do it?. We have to bring people from outside and speakers to inspire them (players). And then you have to find your own way,” Arteta added. “But the big lesson here is stay humble. stay curious and focus on the point and what you want to achieve.”.
As Arsenal were confirmed champions, Arteta’s mind also went back to the moment belief changed inside the group. He said one of the main turning points came in a meeting at the London Colney base near the olive tree, where he pulled the squad together.
“One of the main ones was a meeting we had here next to the (olive) tree. when I got all the players together. and told them look at the squad we’ve built over the summer. We are capable of everything. but that depends on us and behaviours daily. to give the best for the team. ” Arteta said. “Once they realised that. We went to a different level.”.
After the title was secured, Arteta reached beyond Arsenal’s celebrations too. He rang Cherries manager Andoni Iraola on Wednesday, with Bournemouth manager leaving this summer, to thank him for the job he did.
“I didn’t message him. I called him yesterday! First of all to congratulate him for the incredible job he’s done with Bournemouth,” Arteta said. “I said, ‘You almost took the Premier League away from us and now you’ve helped us to win it on the last day’.”
He added that the call was also meant to show admiration and wish Iraola success in his next chapter.
“A quick call to say thank you as well to show my admiration towards him and wish him the best in the next chapter of his career which I’m sure is going to be very, very successful.”
Mikel Arteta Arsenal Premier League Manchester City Bournemouth Andoni Iraola Gabriel Arteta Martin Odegaard London Colney Tape nightclub title drought