Everyone's got a story.
I became an Arsenal fan at 17 when I got invited to Colney on trial. I knew the team was special and went to https://t.co/LwDY9mNfbQ to see who was in the squad and what players were in the reserves as I'd be training with them.
I signed pro a year later, in 2003, and that season the team went unbeaten. A lot had happened that season - I moved to across a big ocean to London, I began my professional career, I got to see Arsenal's Invincibles play weekly in the league and all the cups. I even found myself training with the first team every so often.
It was such a special time. At 18, I probably didn't grasp it - what I did grasp was how incredibly focused and determined that team was. I learned about winning, blocking out noise, and fighting to the end - always fighting to the end.
After the first season I just thought that's how it was - we just didn't lose in the league. Every year since that season, I always see the first loss of the season as a "damn, guess we won't go unbeaten this season" moment.
Over the years, I watched friends I'd played with go on to be superstars; many played in World Cups, one even won it. I became a scout for Arsenal, saw us leave Highbury (a place I had grown so oddly close to despite my brief association with it) and move into the Emirates.
The players I knew eventually retired or moved on, yet the support never faded. We won the occasional cup here and there but the league continued to remain out of our grasp.
When Mikel was announced coach, I was a year into my third stint at the club - this time building our recruitment and performance tech. I'd worked closely with our recruitment team and Edu to build a platform that would help make our decision making better and faster.
A year later, I began working closely with our performance team and Tom Allen specifically to help look after our own players even better. That eventually evolved into a platform that provides workflows for sports science, analysis, medical, nutrition, the coaches and more.
I grew close to the incredible operators that ensure the team is ready to rock and roll each week. I watched us come close - celebrating our wins but ultimately feeling the heartbreak as we fell just short several years in a row.
Last night, we did it. It's been 22 years since I moved to London at 18, and 22 years since we were last crowned Premier League Champions.
I've seen what this club means to people all over the world and know how lucky I am to have represented the club as a player, a scout, and in my last role, someone getting to work with and alongside the team that ensures the best XI players our club has to offer represent us each match day.
I'm now just a fan again, but am so proud of everyone that helped bring that trophy back to North London - and am honestly just so happy.
6am in London, less than 8 hours after winning the league… and the Arsenal boys are just casually walking around the streets like regular lads.
No entourage, no superstar behaviour — just vibes, laughter and football.
Bukayo Saka especially looking like the most normal guy you’d ever meet despite earning thousands every week.
That’s what people forget sometimes: beneath the fame and money, most of these boys are just humble kids who genuinely love playing football.
Congrats to all Arsenal fans around the globe.
#COYG
🚨 Arsenal are Premier League CHAMPIONS!
Mikel Arteta's process is COMPLETE! 🏆
Below, I revisit the ENTIRE process. From December 2019 to May 2026.
From the “Arteta Out” movement to worldwide criticism over many years, we have proved the doubters WRONG!! 💪
MEGA-THREAD! 🚨❤️
You really can’t understand what this Premier League title means to an Arsenal fan unless you’ve lived through the last two decades with them.
This is a fanbase that watched their club go from Invincibles to years of banter, financial restrictions, stadium debt, constant ridicule, losing big players, finishing outside the top four, and becoming the punchline of football conversations online. An entire generation of Arsenal fans grew up hearing stories about league titles instead of actually experiencing one themselves. Went from being utter joke, losing 8-2, 6-0 to Chelsea. Mourinho called their coach a Specialist in Failure.
Some Arsenal fans were children the last time this club won the league. Some are adults now with jobs, families and responsibilities, and this is their first real moment of seeing Arsenal crowned champions. That emotional gap matters. This is not just “another title” to them, it feels like closure after years of patience.
And the journey makes it even more emotional. This wasn’t bought instantly. Mikel Arteta inherited a broken squad, a disconnected atmosphere and a club many people thought had lost its elite standards permanently. Arsenal finished 8th twice. People laughed at the project, laughed at the process, laughed at the signings, laughed at the young players. Every setback became viral content.
But the club stayed committed. The fans stayed committed too.
They watched young players like Bukayo Saka, William Saliba, Martin Ødegaard and others grow from prospects into leaders. They endured title races that ended in heartbreak. They watched rivals celebrate while being told Arsenal were “soft” or “not serious”.
So when this title finally arrives, it’s not just celebration, it’s release. Years of frustration leaving at once.
That’s why the emotions look different. Arsenal fans are not celebrating like a club that wins the league every other season. They’re celebrating like people who waited years to feel respected again. Like supporters who defended their club through every difficult era and are finally seeing belief rewarded.
And honestly, that’s what makes football beautiful sometimes. The long waits make the moments hit harder.