Imagine this scenario: a beginner coach, in his first job, and after six and a half years in the role, he has only won one relevant title — and in 2020. In the last three seasons, he was runner-up in the national championship. Even so, he not only remains in his position but also has the support of the club’s owners and a large part of the fans.
It seems unimaginable in Brazil and unusual in other leagues, but that’s what happens in the Premier League, the most disputed championship on the planet. That coach is Mikel Arteta, Arsenal commander. And, thanks to the club’s decision to focus on continuity, he is now close to achieving an unprecedented feat for a London club coach: winning the English Championship and the Champions League in the same season.
As a player, Arteta captained Arsenal, played for Barcelona B, PSG, Rangers, Everton and Real Sociedad and played for the Spanish youth team. With retirement, the rise was rapid. In 2016, he became Pep Guardiola’s assistant coach at Manchester City. In December 2019, at the age of 37, he was announced as Arsenal coach. At the time, the team was in tenth place in the Premier League.
Months later, he won the FA Cup and… that was it. Well, there are two Community Shield “titles”, decided in a single game between the winners of the FA Cup and the Premier League from the previous year. Over the past three seasons he has finished runners-up in the league, twice to City and once to Liverpool, which in many places would be enough to get him fired.
The world of sport is different, and gone are the days when coaches lasted as long in office as Arsène Wenger and Alex Ferguson, 22 and 26 years, respectively. Today, on average, a Premier League coach lasts two years and three months, a considerable time compared to around five months in Brazil. Arteta is the seventh longest-serving manager in Arsenal’s history and second in the league at the moment, behind Guardiola.
It’s not unanimous, of course, and there are those who defend his departure due to his lack of titles, because they don’t like his style or because they consider him a “bottler” – slang for someone who succumbs under pressure.
But, while we live in an immediate society, Arsenal has been betting on the complete package. He sees Arteta as someone who restored the team’s credibility, has the players’ trust, came close to important trophies, took them back to the Champions League and transformed a mid-table team into a contender for the Premier League title. It helps fill the coffers too. For reaching the Champions League final, the club pocketed 120 million pounds in prize money from UEFA.
In recent days, it seemed that, once again, he would say goodbye to the Premier League title. But in a matter of hours, the scenario changed. Thanks to City’s stumble against Everton, Arsenal once again depended on themselves to be champions. Two days later, he qualified for the Champions League final, undefeated, for the first time in 20 years.
They say around here that this group is four victories away from immortality. Or, who knows, more frustration. But it is a long-term bet that, if they win the next three Premier League clashes and the Champions League final against PSG, Arsenal could have a dream end to the season.
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