2024 has been a strange year for Arsenal.
Mikel Arteta’s side flaunted it better record than any Premier League side over the course of the 12 months, but finished last season as runners-up to Manchester City and trailed Liverpool (as well as Nottingham Forest) until the end of December 2024.
The Gunners claimed their first Champions League knockout win in 14 years, but collected as many trophies as Erik ten Hag’s Manchester United (a Community Shield compared to an FA Cup win).
The highs may not have been as high as the lows were low, but there were still plenty of moments to enjoy along the circuitous route to 2024.
While Bukayo Saka’s unerring consistency, Martin Odegaard’s bursts of magic and Gabriel’s prowess all deserve recognition, William Saliba he has to be considered the standout performer for the Gunners.
Despite the attacking talent at Arteta’s disposal, his team is unashamedly built around a certain defensive determination, with Saliba at its heart. The silk-lined Frenchman not only offers the type of commanding presence it leads to universal recognition from his peersbut he makes those around him – especially Gabriel – much better.
David RayaHis start to life between the posts for Arsenal was made infinitely more difficult by his manager. It has long been forgotten, with Aaron Ramsdale and Hagrid’s outfit shipped off to Southampton in the summer, but Arteta initially claimed he would rotate his goalkeepers.
This pointless misunderstanding never caught on and Raya initially struggled to make a confident start in front of a fanbase still pining for his likable predecessor. A unforgettable Champions League night in March he turned the tide.
Raya had already grown in confidence before saving two penalties as Arsenal knocked Porto out of the last 16 in front of a seething atmosphere at the Emirates. The ghost of Ramsdale – who had been watching the action unfold from the bench – had been purged.
Since then, the Spain international has gone from strength to strength, pulling off a string of increasingly acrobatic saves at the start of the current campaign to ensure Arsenal’s season was not completely derailed.
Ethan Nuaneri‘small the first start of the Premier League may have reached 2025, but the 17-year-old prodigy has made a significant impact throughout 2024. In 17 appearances – most of them in part-time roles in England’s top flight – the skilful left-back managed four goals.
Such is Nwaneri’s undeniable talent – an appreciation of time and space that team-mate Riccardo Calafiori has described as “pure” – that Arteta has had to exercise extreme restraint to avoid overplaying the teenager.
“60 million down the drain,” or so the chant goes, “Kai Havertz he scores again!” Arsenal’s often lanky German, a player whose legs seem a little too long and his arms marginally too short for his angular frame, scored an impressive 21 goals for the Gunners.
While not in between Europe’s top scorers in 2024Havertz narrowly beat Boukayo Saka, who bagged 20. After 19 in the league alone, it’s Arsenal’s collective performance.
2024 was not a stellar hiring year Arsenal. The Gunners didn’t bring in a single senior player during the previous January window and – apart from making David Raya’s loan move permanent – gave Arteta’s side just three new signings last summer.
Raheem Sterling’s terrible six months are hardly worthy of attention, leaving a straight battle between Riccardo Calafiori and Mikel Merino.
The two towering figures, raised by European sides punching above their weight just below the upper echelons of elite continental football, have both had their highs and lows.
Merino broke his shoulder during his first training session with the Gunners, yet played just three fewer minutes than his Italian counterpart, who struggled with less dramatic injuries during his first six months in north London. Cauliflower he’s just getting the tip off. That recognition was almost entirely due to his spectacular equalizer in a 2-2 draw with Manchester City in September, before the defending champions were undone.
Arsenal last hosted Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool in early February. Trailing the league leaders Reds by five points at the time, the Gunners had everything to do at the Emirates. And they did.
Arteta’s side weathered, brooding and exhausted the visitors. A false pair of Martin Odegaard and Kai Havertz singled out the lavender shirts, leaving the normally formidable pair of Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konate beset by uncertainty and indecision.
Bucayo Saka’s opener was canceled out late in the half by an objectively hilarious handball from Gabriel, who somehow conspired to bring Liverpool level, but the Gunners roared back to 3-1 win.
The Emirates were jubilant at the final whistle and Odegaard captured the occasion by stealing Stuart MacFarlane’s camera to snap a picture of the photographer on the pitch. The questionable quality of those shots was the only negative from a night to remember. “To be honest,” Odegaard admitted, “I don’t know, it was a bit of a blur!”
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2025-01-02 21:00:00
