Why Arteta evolution means Arsenal are definitely better this season than last

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Mikel Arteta has improved Arsenal since last season.

Arsenal have not generally looked as fluent or efficient in attack this season as they did last time around. Last season, the Gunners came storming out of the blocks and emerged as surprise Premier League title contenders after a remarkable first half of the campaign.

Gabriel Jesus was a revelation for the north London club last season after his arrival from Manchester City, whilst the likes of Martin Odegaard, Bukayo Saka, and Gabriel Martinelli all took their game to another level. Granit Xhaka, reinvented as an attack-minded left-eight, also had his best season as an Arsenal player, contributing seven goals and seven assists in the Premier League alone.

The way Arsenal played last season also reenergised the relationship between the club and the fans. With new heroes to get behind, such as William Saliba and Oleksandr Zinchenko, amongst others, the atmosphere at the Emirates Stadium was better than ever.

This connection between players and supporters was amped up by the many rollercoaster matches that they went through together. Dramatic comebacks against Fulham, Aston Villa, Bournemouth, and Southampton kept the Gunners’ title dream alive up until the final few weeks of the season.

However, these kinds of chaotic performances were never Mikel Arteta’s ideal. The Spanish coach has often stressed the need for control, and a desire to kill games by playing “300,000 passes,” as quoted by The Telegraph.

How Mikel Arteta has taken Arsenal to the next level

So far this season, Arteta’s side have embraced that ideal further. A great deal of emphasis has been put on making the team more solid at the back, and less likely to ever find themselves in a position where they need to chase a game. There is undeniable evidence that this is working. Arsenal are currently top of the Premier League table, and boast the best defensive record in the division, having conceded just ten goals in thirteen games.

Last season, eventual champions Manchester City conceded 33 goals, whereas Arsenal let in 43 – the same amount as Manchester United, who finished nine points behind them. Since the 2014/15 season, no team has ever won the title having let in more than 36 goals, and that was Leicester City. The average is significantly lower.

Clearly, that is where Arsenal needed to improve, and Arteta has ensured that they have. Work on the training pitch has surely helped, but so has smart choices in the transfer market. The summer additions of Declan Rice and Kai Havertz now allows the Gunners to better maintain a stranglehold on matches, as both players can be relied upon to win their duels in the middle of the park, and they have the athleticism and defensive awareness to track back and effectively support the defence when possession has been lost.

It may have blunted their attack somewhat as they have adapted to this more reserved and controlled style of play, but Arsenal have still been able to grind out results.

Now, having just thrashed Lens 6-0 in a Champions League clash, the Gunners look to be finding their groove in the final third again, too.

Arteta’s first choice front five would likely consist of Jesus, Saka, Martinelli, Odegaard, and Havertz. That quintet started a competitive match together for the very first time ever against Lens. Every single one of them was on the scoresheet by half-time.

Former Chelsea striker Chris Sutton believes other clubs should be afraid of Arsenal this season. Given it looks like the Gunners have taken such an important step forward since the end of last season, he is probably right to sound the warning.