The Season Of Hopes And Dreams In An Arsenal Wonderland
A Season Ending Arsenal Wonderland Special
The first Arsenal Wonderland article I wrote was about Martin Ødergaard - The World’s Youngest Village Elder. I had been writing comments on The Athletic and the response had been very generous. At one point Amy Lawrence herself came on to compliment a comment, “Thanks for writing me off the page” she said (with a wry smile - I hadn’t of course). I was getting ridiculously flattered. It was then the idea for writing AW began to form.
At that time I had a fixed routine. I’d wake up at 6:30 am, make a coffee and feed the dog. Then I’d check The Athletic and take 10 minutes to fire off some post under one of the Arsenal articles whilst drinking my coffee and avoiding the dog’s piercing stare. He doesn’t approve of my Arsenal leanings, there are much better ways to spend ones time according to him. My wife would leave the house and shortly after the dog and I would head into the frozen dark of the Northern winter. He’s hardcore the dog, so I follow him into the wild every single day.
I’ve always wanted to be a writer but there’s been a million different things pulling me in a million different directions. Family, friends, life, scratching a living. What I needed was a discipline, a reason to write, something I couldn’t ignore or procrastinate away. I simply needed something to write about. Posting on The Athletic made that “something” obvious and on January 23rd I launched Arsenal Wonderland with a Martin Ødergaard article.
Exactly one week later I received an email. It was from Martin Ødergaard’s PR manager Rebecca James. Life is full of surprises and this was definitely one of them. Rebecca had been the Communications Manager at Arsenal for 8 years before bravely taking the leap and founding her Limitless Sports Consultancy with Ødegaard, Saka and Xhaka as her initial clients. She very generously told me that she and Martin loved the article: “I just wanted to say what a wonderfully considerate, beautifully articulated profile piece you have written about Martin Ø. Not many people understand him and his unique and special qualities, so I am amazed at how well you’ve captured this”.
One week into writing Arsenal Wonderland and one of the most brilliant players to captain Arsenal had found my article and loved it. My first feeling was, obviously, that this couldn’t be real, things like this don’t happen.
One of the scariest things in life is to allow yourself be vulnerable. Daring to open up and let others see you is pure bravery. It might sound counterintuitive but the strongest and longest lasting relationships are built on the foundations of vulnerability. Writing is an exercise in vulnerability and so is being a football fan. You know this is true, you know what it’s like to be a fan and grab life by the lapels and start shaking, come on then life, give me your best shot! Being a fan takes immense bravery because we put our hopes and dreams out there for everyone to see, we dare to show who we are and we dare to face the consequences when everything falls apart.
Yes, of course there’s always people lurking in the wings waiting to crush the brave spirit of fandom. There are always people who are so terrified of the enigma and messiness of life that they refuse to bare their own vulnerability, refuse to hope. And they’re just plain furious with you for doing so. Imagine Nelson Muntz started a band called Nelson Muntz And The Mocking Ha Ha's and they had a one hit wonder "You Lost, Ha Ha” that played over and over and over again. That’s those people. They couldn’t wait to call Arsenal “bottlers” when we didn’t win the league and they pompously pretended they’d known we’d “fail” all along.
But for those of us fans that dare to dream there’s no “failing”. Beyond the fleeting pain and loss, beyond the anguish and disappointment there’s something much more valuable. We’re rewarded with feeling truly alive in this delicate, fragile and beguiling experience called life. We get to experience the extraordinary clarity of consciousness. We get to revel in those incredible breathless moments as football takes hold of our emotional architecture and reminds us that life is short and all we have is each other. We’re in it as much for the losses as for the wins. We’re in it for the journey. We’re in it for love.
And there lies the magic of Mikel Arteta who so skillfully sculpted a team of players who dare to show how much they want to win. Our fan hearts go out to this team because their hearts are in it the whole way. Earlier in the season I wrote “Arteta knows that football isn't a business. Yes, there’s stupendous amounts of money sloshing around it, but football is fundamentally a passion. I'm not a customer, I'm a fan with emotional investment. Arteta knows this and he's worked on and off the pitch to create that oh so difficult thing to nurture, that feeling, that connection, that pride”
And what a connection and what pride this season has cultivated. Yes, football is win orientated, but it’s actually far more participation orientated. Without doubt this season has had the most intimacy and sense of belonging of any season I can remember. Hearing “The Angel” sung full throated around The Emirates as the team gather in a huddle and Zinchenko or Xhaka or Jorginho deliver their fiery-eyed sermons or Ødegaard’s hand-chops his carefully spoken words of encouragement has been like a glorious initiation every single week.
Since he was appointed Arteta has offered “solace, engaged with a frayed self-esteem, brought healing to the culture, restored the camaraderie and recharged the fighting mentality of the players, the club and the fans” and this season we’ve all bathed in a togetherness emanating through the team, out of the stands and into the hearts of every Arsenal fan watching all around the world. And on occasions that fellowship exploded into pure delirious roars of joy.
Think of the Bournemouth game. Even before Reece’s ball flew into the net time stopped. I swear the Universe took a beat. Minds were lost for a flash as they froze in a moment of screaming peace. As the camera mistakenly followed Saliba into a corner-flag-kicking-celebration, The Emirates morphed into a single unit of mutual disbelief and shared joy. You don’t get that by refusing to be vulnerable dear reader. You don’t get that reward by carping from the sidelines.
Think of the double over Tottenham and that Partey goal. Remember how the game slowed down, players on both teams standing almost motionless, like “pieces in an elaborate game of chess” (thanks Peter Drury), only Saka jinking along barely coaxing the ball as he passes to White who nonchalantly pushes the ball toward Partey who in turn takes a couple of steps and releases a curling non-stopper from 25 yards. A goal as beautiful as Jesus’ next was messy. And then Xhaka’s redemption curve turning full Hollywood as he pops out of a moment of confusion to claim another three points.
Think of the Aston Villa comeback and that Jorginho goal. The Gods of Football having the time of their lives pin-balling the crossbar and in off the back of Martinez’s head. Oh the poetic justice. Emery Vs Arteta, Ollie Watkins and his damned anti-Arsenal scoring boots and that little trouble maker Coutinho seemingly destroying our faith. But the Gods had other ideas, handing Saka that volley, giving Zinchenko his first ever Arsenal goal and then orchestrating that head-bouncing outrageous luck-bomb in the final moments. Was it over? Oh no. They granted Vieira his sliding one knee prayer to Martinelli’s crucifixion celebration in front of an empty goal as the guilty goalie tried to make amends at the wrong end. Tell me that’s not a heavenly reward for the fan willing to crucify themselves on a weekly basis.
Then there’s the highlights that we all know and love: The Man U comeback. The Fulham comeback. That sweeping Saliba goal and the eternal Tequila chant at Bournemouth. Think of Arteta roaming the touchline like a mad professor debating with his demons. The arrival of Jesus and how Zinchenko spent half a season pulling skinny-kid bodybuilder poses and redefining the meaning of Left Back to Anywhere You Want Back. Think of Ian Wright screaming his way from studio to studio. Think of the Newcastle at St James's game and how we just weren’t taking it anymore. Think of Arteta finding a lost kid in the mayhem of the Bournemouth celebrations and ushering him towards security.
This season resurrected the love and the faith and reminded us all that grabbing life by the lapels is the only way to live. Daring to be vulnerable is the bravest act and giving it your best shot is all you can ask. So halfway through the season I put my hopes and dreams on the line too. I dared to grab life by the lapels and I launched Arsenal Wonderland. Since then there’s been literally tens of thousands of reads from 45 countries. Writing AW has been an absolute pleasure. I’m grateful to Rebecca James for reaching out and letting me know that Martin Ødegaard himself has been on the AW journey and I’m grateful to Arteta and our whole squad and for this wonderful season. And most of all I’m grateful to you dear reader for taking the time to read AW week in and week out from wherever you are in the world.
Over the summer I’ll write the odd article (because I won’t be able to resist it) but AW won’t come out weekly until next season kicks off again when I promise, just like our team, it’ll be even better and even more carefully considered. So be sure to join me (and the dog) next season as we continue drifting through the Swedish forest pondering Arsenal, life and trying to be a human in these poignant times. Have a great summer fellow Gooners and remember, if football be the food of love, play on.
"We’re in it as much for the losses as for the wins. We in it for the journey. We in it for love." Your writing gets to the core of every gooner. Small edit - the latter two sentences should say "We're" instead of "We.
I waited to read this (and all other Arsenal content, including listening to my podcasts) until my own draft for that companion piece I mentioned last week was done. I'll share it once it's up next week :) Anyway, I'm glad I waited since this was the most lovely way to celebrate (not to mention that we're on the same page about everything that matters). You've captured the season so well, Jonathan, and I'm grateful you found my page earlier this year, so that I could join and enjoy your beautiful, thoughtful writing. Here's to a good summer ahead before we come back for more!