Emery was replaced by another Spaniard, the former Arsenal midfielder Mikel Arteta, and for a couple of seasons the cycle of rage, hope and Crystal Palace continued.
Wenger was dismissed in 2018 and replaced by Unai Emery, a cheerful Spaniard with little idea of the toxic chalice he was taking on. Penance begat rage, rage begat supplication, supplication begat self-flagellation, which begat rebirth, optimism, hope and a dispiriting 3-0 defeat to a team like Crystal Palace. We felt their pain, until there came a point when Arsenal stopped making you feel anything at all. Their most famous and vocal fan was Piers Morgan. The ticket prices were among the highest in the country. The years of glory under Arsène Wenger were long gone. Some time ago Arsenal stopped being a team loathed by most rival fans, who instead began to regard them with a mixture of pity and irritation. But as the songs and the throngs swelled, it felt bigger and more meaningful than that.įor those of us who have followed Arsenal’s fortunes and misfortunes over the past decade, this in itself was remarkable enough. On the face of things, it was a predictable home win against a newly promoted opposition. Arsenal had just scored a late goal to beat Fulham 2-1, and the festivities would continue for hours, out on to the Holloway Road, into the pubs of Islington and Finsbury Park. From the Clock End in the south of the Emirates Stadium came a guttural roar, the sort not heard in these parts for years.
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