Arsenal FC’s slow start to the 2021–2022 Premier League season was so terrible that the critics of the club thought the club would be relegated.
The Gunners started the season with a 2-0 loss against recently promoted Brentford, and after defeats to Chelsea and Manchester City, they were left with zero points and nine goals conceded but none scored.
Mikel Arteta’s dismissal was widely demanded, and jokes that Arsenal would spend the entire season fighting for survival were flying everywhere.
Arsenal’s awful 2021–2022 start
But as we all know, in the grand scheme of Arsenal’s season, it ultimately turned out to be a tempest in a teacup as they proceeded to stun everyone by making a run for the Champions League spots.
Even though they may have failed at the very last moment, the north London club battled back against all odds to demonstrate that their young team is capable of punching above its weight.
However, they couldn’t have done it without Arteta’s outstanding effort behind the scenes, which will be featured in the newest “All or Nothing” documentary on Amazon Prime.
By allowing cameras inside their environment and providing supporters with an unparalleled look inside what their 2021/22 season was really like, the Gunners followed in the footsteps of Manchester City, Tottenham Hotspur, and Juventus.
The Premier League juggernauts also shared a fantastic clip of Arteta’s dressing room statement to his team after losing those first three games before the documentary’s August 4 premiere.
Arteta speaks after a string of three losses by Arsenal
The strain on the former City coach’s pre-game statement couldn’t have been greater as he addressed his team prior to what would turn out to be a 1-0 victory over Norwich City in their fourth league encounter.
Many managers would have opened the game with a bang, sensing their Rocky moment and attempting to deliver a yelling match of a speech in the expectation that the players would be psyched up to fight.
But instead of doing that, Arteta did something far more significant by giving a statement that was completely sincere and in which he spoke about everything from his gratitude for his friends, family, and the squad to his exceptional performance in the emergency services.
Check out the moving speech that Arteta gave to his team when everything appeared lost if you’re an Arsenal supporter in need of a good cry:
Mikel, bow your head. That is truly impressive.
Outstanding speech by Arteta
After the losses to Brentford, Chelsea, and City, the atmosphere around Arsenal was extremely toxic and unpleasant, and any outcome other than a victory versus Norwich was deemed unacceptable.
However, Arteta’s sincere attitude certainly paid off, as Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang later scrambled in the game-winning goal to send Arsenal to a 1-0 victory that very well saved their manager’s job.
After all, it isn’t even worth imagining how things might have turned out at Arsenal if Arteta hadn’t set up his team for success and instead had led the club to one of its worst-ever starts to a season.
And that simply goes to show that sometimes being vulnerable may inspire people the most as a leader, rather than blind stoicism and fake strength.
