There are many Arsenal fans who will remember the final day of the 2003-2004 season, it is a day a no Arsenal fan will forget. It was the day when Arsenal under the stewardship of Arsene Wenger had done the impossible. Arsenal had gone the entire Premier League season without losing a single game.
Every season some team or the other will win the Premier League, it will happen and that is how it works, and every year the winner will lift the coveted silver trophy, and this has happened every year since the top flight of English Football came into being and it will happen till the top flight of English football exists.
However, there was one season when the Premier League Champions were not given the coveted silver trophy. That one season was when Arsenal were presented a specially forged Golden Premier League Trophy to celebrate the fact that the Gunners were not just the Champions, they were the Invincibles.
It is the only ever instance of it happening and given how challenging the Premier League is, there is a good chance it will never happen again. Arsene Wenger and Arsenal had struck gold, and not just figuratively. That this success came on the back of playing a very attractive attacking, free-flowing brand of football, was a source of pride for the Gooners, who called it the 'Arsenal Way' of football.
That Arsenal side is one of the greatest teams the Premier League has ever seen as they went through the entire campaign unbeaten. I have heard some of the arguments against this statement, and suffice it to say, more points or lesser goals let in, or more goals scored, or lesser red cards or more corners, or any other stat does not even come close to the only stat of any consequence here, and that one stat is P-38, L-0.
The Decline
As far as the Premier League goes, there exists no greater height to rise to. Arsene Wenger and Arsenal were at the absolute top there is. Who would have believed then that Arsenal would not win, would not even come close to winning the Premier League again for the next 12 years, and yet here we are.
The decline was slow, one rung of the ladder at a time, and at the end of each season, everyone connected with Arsenal said to themselves, it’s just one rung, we will cover it up, but it was one rung lower the next season too, and the next and the next. Even though the decline was one step of the ladder a time, over the course of so many years, Arsenal have slipped just too far down from where they used to be.
In the initial years of the decline, the fans were told it's all okay, as Arsenal are building this new stadium, and when the greater revenue flows in through the ticket sales, Arsenal will be even more successful. A new land was promised to the Arsenal fans, filled with resources, and trophies and success.
Nearly a decade on from the move to the Emirates Stadium how do things stand? By their own admission, Arsenal are struggling to compete financially with the likes of Chelsea and Manchester City. What do Arsenal have to show as far as success on the field goes - 2 FA Cups!
Arsenal have not finished in the top two of the Premier League even once since the move to the Emirates stadium, and for a 6th straight season should fail to get to even the Quarter-Finals of the Champions' League. Highbury became rubble for this !?! Is this the new better land that was promised to the Arsenal Fans?
There are no doubt many clubs who would kill to be in with a shot of winning the title, and of nearly 18 straight years of Champions' League football. However, this is not what the promise made to Arsenal fans was. For most teams finishing 3rd or 4th would be a step up, but for Arsenal 3rd and 4th is a step-down, from where they were.
Arsenal had Champions' League football even before their move to the Emirates, but then they used to be among the big European clubs. Now, even though Arsenal are in the Champions League, they are now in the pot 2 of European clubs and haven't even reached the Quarter Finals for many seasons. It’s a step down from where Arsenal used to be before the move to Emirates.
Did Arsenal move to the Emirates so they could go from challenging for trophies to challenging for 4th place? Where is the promised land?
Arsenal did get a very hard-fought point in the North London Derby to just about keep their title challenge alive. However, within those 90 mins, Arsenal showed all the naivety that has cost them so many trophies over and over again. A mad challenge saw Arsenal lose Coquelin and once again in a crucial game, they found themselves a man down.
All the defensive frailties returned as within 5 minutes of the sending off, Tottenham equalised as Arsenal failed to defend a regulation corner and two minutes later, Arsenal were behind. The Gunners did recover a point eventually, but this match was not one where Arsenal could afford to leave with just one point.
Arsenal were in a position to take the full three points and with their naivety once again threw away that position and were forced to settle for just 1 point.
The season is still a long way away from finished and a quarter of the matches are still to be played. Arsenal could yet go on and win the league, although it seems unlikely right now. The Gunners now walk a very fine line between success and failure, and 4th place this season will be just that, a failure.
Arsenal cannot afford to drop any more points between now and the end of the season. If they do, then Arsenal will once again be reduced to fighting for 3rd and 4th place and this is not what was promised to Arsenal fans and those responsible must have to leave for failing to deliver on the promises.
A decade on, its time to fix accountability and a new group of people must be found, from the Board to the manager to the players who can deliver and take Arsenal to the promised land.
