The Art Of The Emirates
The love for Arsenal veins through the Emirates stadium, but how has this beautiful stadium changed lives and pointed the biggest club in London to the future.
THE EARLY YEARS AT THE EMIRATES
Arsenal FC are a prestigious club built on heritage and passion. The club moved into the Emirates Stadium in 2006, after spending 93 years at Highbury Stadium. The decision was driven by the need for a larger and more modern venue to compete with other top clubs all across the world. Designed by Populous, the new stadium had a capacity of 60,704, offering improved facilities for fans and players alike. The move was a significant milestone in Arsenal's history, representing their ambition to continue to compete with top clubs alike.
The Emirates first open its doors to fans in the 2006-2007 season and the first game held was Dennis Berkamps testimonial match against Ajax FC. Fans across the world were excited to see the new home of their beloved club who only a few years prior in the 2003-2004 season won the League Title without losing a single game. This is a feat that to this day is still yet to be repeated and Arsenal's 'Invisibles' are known as one of the greatest sides of all time. A
Upon the move, the club was going into this new area at the Emirates without a few of their star players such as Robert Pires, Sol Campbell and Ashley Cole. A huge chunk of their Highbury stars were leaving giving a sense of the shift to the new era. New additions to the club were also made bringing in modern day Arsenal hero's like William Gallas and Alex Song.
However the season upon the club wasn't great. Arsenal had a rocky season picking up 68 points and finishing 4th in a Champions League spot. The club were well off the league title and the season wasn't up to what the fans were promised upon the move to the new ground. The following year saw a huge leap in performance from the club. However, in the summer transfer window Arsenal saw their star player Thierry Henry leave the club in a move to Barcelona. The Arsenal team was now without their main man but they were still firing on all fronts and just couldn't make it over the line in a heavy mudded title race. In the end they finished on 83 points, just 4 points behind Manchester United in 1st.
The fans were hopeful moving into the 2008/2009 season after the club made a push for the title last year. However it wasn't all as bright and colourful as expected. The Gunners finished 4th with only 72 points, a far stray away from the title. The team was competing in the Champions league going into the later stages where they were eliminated in the semi-finals. The same story plays out in the FA Cup , as the team could also only reach the semi-finals here once again.
63 year old Darnell Jack is a life long Arsenal fan and comments on his hopes from the 2008/2009 season. "Upon the start of the year we as fans were just excited. We expected a lot from the boys as it was now 4 years without us winning the league title. Overall I was now starting to feel a bit far from it all and just wanted to see us win again."
Arsenal were consistent in finishing in a top four spot, but it just seemed that they were missing that final spark and edge to push past teams like Chelsea and Manchester United. The team needed an injection of cash for new players, which they were missing after such an expensive move to the Emirates.
Modern Day Emirates
Life Under Mikel Arteta
December 2019 Appointment
After current day Aston Villa Manager Unai Emery was sacked from the club Arsenal appointed former player and captain Mikel Arteta. The appointment came with a lot of controversy as Mikel had no previous managerial experience and was only the assistant manager to Manchester Cities Pepe Guardiola. However he was given a chance by the fans as their was a serious hatred for previous manager Emery after many poor performances which weren't up to the Arsenal standards. Upon the move to the Emirates the fans were promised that they would be able now compete regularly with the best teams in the world, but this currently was not the case. Arteta's team finished 8th in an incredibly lack lustre season dropping points 24 separate times.
The 2020/2021 Season
Arsenal were struggling through the virus on and off of the pitch. With little to no fans in the stadium it was becoming increasingly expensive for the club to run the stadium. However the fans were always trying to stay positive about their club. Darnell Jack commented, "I have always trusted in Mikel. He knows the passion of the club and what it means to play for the badge and that's why I have always given him time." The season once again did not go to play for the Gunners as they finished 8th in the league for the second year running. Fans were getting tired of how their team was playing, but some fans saw a hint of the light. Simeon Hurley comments, "We had a horrible season. But I could see what Mikel was trying to do. Before the start of the season he was getting rid of the dead wood like Ozil while bringing winners like Thomas Partey. I trusted his process and knew he needed more time."
The 2021/2022 Season
The summer transfer window started off with a few huge statements. Arsenal FC had decided to terminate the contract of their former star player in Aubameyang, letting him leave for free to Barcelona FC. Arteta was determined to throw out as much dead wood as he could and continued the process as we saw David Luiz and Willian also leave the club. While current day captain Martin Odegard, Benjamin White and Aaron Ramsdale were brought into the club. 19 year old season ticket holder Simeon Hurley commented on the new signings, "Of course people were saying we over payed for the calibre of players which we'd brought in, but once again I had trust in Mikel. I knew he was trying to build something here." The Gunners finished the season in 5th, only 2 points behind bitter rivals Tottenham in 4th. They had just slipped out of a Champions League spot, but progress was inevitable as Arteta's system was clear and the players on the pitch were adapting well.
The 2022/2023 Season
With the start of the summer window Arsenal were moving fast. The club forked out £45 Million for Manchester City Striker Gabriel Jesus, who was out of favour upon the big summer signing for Manchester city, Erling Haaland. Zinchenko was also brought in for an extra £30 Million from Manchester City, and it was clear that Arsenal were pushing for a top 4 spot this year. Arteta also emptied out a few more players who were also considered dead wood. The likes of Hector Bellerin and Lucas Torreria departed from the club. Darnell Jack gave us his thoughts upon the start of the 2022/2023 season, "I honestly was just hoping we could push for a top 4 spot. I was confident in our signings and I was now starting to see Arteta's managerial quality." Arsenal FC were the shock of the season, the players on the pitch seemed to know how to play with Arteta's system and the new additions were all flourishing. Come Christmas Arsenal were top of the Premier League table, a huge achievement but the season wasn't over yet. In the new year the Emirates was seeing amazing football which it had been deprived of for years. The fans believed while the players did also. Arsenal seemed set to win the Premier League Title. Simeon Hurley, "We were amazing all year and I honestly believed, but not all things are meant to be." Arsenal fell over the last few hurdles drawing games to Liverpool and West ham from winning positions. In the end the Emirates was deprived of it's first Premier League Title but fans were still adamant that they come back stronger next season.
The Emirates Accolades
2006-2024
The move to the Emirates was a major move for many fans. They were promised success and future European dominance.
The club has not achieved as much as they would have wanted to since 2006. Zero league titles have come home to the Emirates as the club celebrates their 20th year anniversary of their Invincible season. Coincidently this was the last time that they won the league title.
Additionally the club hasn't been yet successful in Europe competing in the Champions League and Europa League respectively. The team honestly has never come close to winning a Champions League since the move to the Emirates with many early knockouts in the tournament. Whereas in the Europa league, UEFA's second tier tournament, the team made the Final once in 2019 where they were destroyed 4 goals to one by London rivals Chelsea. The lack of any European showing from the club has been extremely disappointing as the club famously reached a Champions League final back in their last season at Highbury. The club lost in the end to Barcelona.
Arsenal haven't won the English League Cup since their move to the Emirates, but they have competed well in the FA Cup winning 4 times since the move into the Emirates. Most recently under Mikel Arteta the side won the oldest cup completion in football in the 2019/2020 season, Mikel's first year at the club. Arsenal now have the most FA Cup wins in history with a total of 14. Additionally, the club has brought home 5 Community Shield wins with the most recent one coming in 2023. The side defeat Manchester City on penalties with Fabio Vieira scoring the deciding penalty.
Darnell Jack comments on Arsenals accolades since the move away from Highbury, "It's quite poor. I've seen great title winning sides and only know do we really have a great side to try and compete but its to late. In this stadium we had to many years of mediocre seasons." The club have 9 trophies since the move, but are these trophies all that important in relevance to winning the Premier League or Champions League? Bill Young comments, "I would trade all of those FA Cups since the move that we've won for one league title. I would do the same for one Champions League title as well, honestly we are much bigger than a few FA Cup wins."
The Creation And Aim In Building The New Home Of Arsenal Football Club
The Timing And Art Of The Design
The timing of production and completion was crucial. Pre-qualification games were a requirement for Arsenal to compete in European competitions so they need somewhere to play. Furthermore, if the team continued to play at Highbury for another season, a late handover from builders would have delayed the club's Highbury ground's renovation. Overcoming design hurdles was also necessary. Superb planning and engineering was needed to source and build the massive steel trusses that supported the roof of the Emirates. World-class engineering, excellent coordination, and skilled construction project management allowed the Emirates to be turned over two weeks ahead of schedule. The Emirates Stadium, which hosted its inaugural game eight days after handover, went on to garner industry accolades and establish standards for stadiums worldwide. The stadium was the first of its kind, pathing the way for the future of stadiums alike.
Throughout the preconstruction stage, Sir Robert McAlpine oversaw the design team and worked with the supply chain to determine the most efficient way to meet the design and budgetary requirements on schedule. Additionally the designers early involvement of the project allowed them to easily recognise and prepare for and construction challenges that could result from the roof of the stadium. The early notice given by Arsenal aided the designers massively.
The stadium is covered by an enormous 27,200m2 roof. Situated towards the pitch to optimise natural light, this is supported by two 204 meter long tubular steel major arches in along with two smaller 100 meter trusses. There were many difficulties in designing and building this roof. Coordinating timing, deciding on the most effective construction approach, and sourcing components that met precisely the requirements were all essential.
Initially, the two primary trusses of the roof were meant to be assembled on the pitch into one big piece. However this would take up most of the stadium's area, meaning would have delayed construction of the terraces due to complication with space. Therefore, Sir Robert McAlpine revised the plans and decided to assemble each of the 720 tonne structures side by side in two halves, allowing other works to continue and ensure that there wouldn't be a late hand over.
The major project cost the club around £240 Million, which in todays world in adjustment with the current inflation is around £390 Million. For comparison, Neymar Jr's transfer from Barcelona to PSG cost the club £200 Million back in the summer of 2017. This enormous fee is still to this day the record for any football player ever. A further comparison can be done with Arsenal record transfer, Declan Rice. The club payed West Ham United a fee of £105 Million to acquire his services in the summer of 2023. This is almost half what Arsenal payed for their entire stadium.
What's In The Future For The Emirates?
Interviews with season ticket holders
Life long Arsenal Fan and season ticket holder, Darnell Jack believes the stadium has become one of the loudest atmospheres in England. "We really have seen the development of the atmosphere in our ground since we've started winning games. Mikel's men have done an excellent job in motivating the fans not only to turn up but make noise and support the team."
Simeon Hurley aged 19 also sees it the same, "I love this club, and now the stadium is so noisy because we all can believe in our team now. We haven't been great for the the greater part of my entire life, but the team is now performing and the fans love it."
Meanwhile Bill Young, aged 35, believes the stadium can be even louder. "We are loud, of course this is Arsenal, but we can be even louder. I've seen for a while now we've got a few boys in the Clock End with a drum and flags. That really is great but we need the whole Clock End and the North Bank to be a wall of support. Drums, speakers, flags all of it."
The stadium is full of people of all ages and races. Men, women, children even babies attend the Emirates and recently is has grown in atmosphere. The fans love their ground and only want to the players to love the Arsenal and perform to the Arsenal's high standards. This hasn't been the case since the opening of the ground mainly due to the performances on the pitch. The fans can't enjoy and passionately support their team if the team doesn't know what it means to play for such a large club.
Simeon Hurley comments the change in player passion, "they all seem to love to play for the club and that's all thanks to the manager. Mikel has injected to love of the fans into the players and reminded them what it means to play for the fans. If the players give it their all, then we will give all of our support."
Bill Young believes that Mikel Arteta is Arsenal's savour, "It is all down to Mikel. Honestly I didn't believe in him. When he got rid of Aubameyang and couldn't crack top 4, I thought he was the problem. But in reality the man was getting rid of the leaches in the club and re-installing players that know what it means to play for the Arsenal."
While Darnell Jack also credits the manager, "I have always believed in him as I saw it the same as him. When you've watched football as long as me I can tell when the enemy is sometimes standing right next to you. In this case it was the players that weren't up to the level that Arsenal football club needs and demands. Mikel saw this and sorted our big problem."
The current future of Arsenal at the Emirates looks bright. The stadium is always rocking and packed on match days. Built in 2006, the ground is approaching it 20th birthday. How has the experience been for these Arsenal fans at the Emirates so far?
Bill Young loves the Emirates, "I love the ground. I see it as my home. Of course I remember Highbury, but the change was necessary. We are a much bigger club than what Highbury could offer us and the move was necessary. The stadium looks great, the pitch looks great and we're playing great. I have nothing to complain about."
Simeon Hurley was to young to have been to Highbury but says he loves the Emirates. "Nothing negative to say about our home at all. It looks great, when you get in every seat is nice. The view of the pitch is nice and the atmosphere is amazing now. It feels like home when your there.
Meanwhile Darnell Jack says he does miss Highbury." I've seen so many good days at Highbury. Of course this stadium looks better and has all the new technology with lights and the pitch. But Highbury is my first home. I still love it here, but I see it as my second home after a move."
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