Winners
Granit Xhaka
Well, it may not be officially confirmed but there is an expectation that Granit Xhaka will leave the club this summer. Bayer Leverkusen are the side looking to bring in the Swiss midfielder and based on the chants at the end of the 5-0 win over Wolves it will be a reluctant farewell.
But all the same, what a turnaround this man has succeeded in pulling off. From storming down the tunnel in 2019 against Crystal Palace and having the captaincy stripped from him by Unai Emery he was brought back into the fold by Mikel Arteta.
This season, he evolved and turned into a goalscoring and creative fulcrum in the side. Seven goals and seven assists in total mean that if he is to leave Arsenal have a massive amount of goals to find from midfield or other areas.
READ MORE: Granit Xhaka's Arsenal legacy as midfielder signs off with Wolves masterclass
Martin Odegaard
What a season. Joining the Kevin De Bruyne as the highest non-penalty goalscoring midfielder with 15 strikes this season the Norwegian has gone to another level.
Goals against Tottenham Hotspur are becoming a regularity, some amazing pieces of technical skill the norm and he’s reaching a level that perhaps we all knew was on the cards since he was very young. Ensuring he too signs a new deal is imperative.
Taking the captaincy Odegaard has become the face of the club and at times carried his side through some very tough moments. All I can say is Real Madrid thank you very much, why on Earth did you let him go?
Bukayo Saka
Having signed a brand new contract, Bukayo Saka will be at Arsenal until at least 2027. It was imperative that the club kept their star man and they have done what will be as key as a brand-new signing.
A goal in the final game of the season demonstrates exactly why the club are so willing to pay the money to keep him. If Arsenal are serious about competing with Manchester City in future title races then the likes of Saka can only be the start.
William Saliba remains very much at the centre of the thoughts of the Gunners’ supporters. Saka’s new deal can perhaps inspire the likes of the Frenchman to also commit their futures; but having Saka, Gabriel Martinelli, Aaron Ramsdale and Gabriel Magalhães all renew this season is a very good sign indeed.
Mikel Arteta
Who would have thought that Arsenal would have challenged for a title? Well, perhaps Mikel Arteta did and beside the talk of phases and process the Spaniard has always championed the idea of reaching heights that people never expected.
The huge majority of the Arsenal supporters are fully behind him and the reaction in the Emirates at full-time certainly confirmed this. The philosophy is clear, the message coherent and the principles are strict but it is the raw determination to get this club back to where it belongs to be.
He has inspired a generation of supporters and has proven to be the right man for the job. Now it is a case if he is the man that can lead this club to a title, I have serious optimism he is.
Losers
Emile Smith Rowe
It’s difficult to make conclusions about a season that has been so affected by injury but few can deny that what has followed the reviver from surgery has been anything but positive. Premier League minutes were rare and Reiss Nelson managed to rise above the number ten in Arteta’s pecking order.
There have been suggestions that Smith Rowe could even leave this summer if Arsenal receive the right amount of money. A year ago he was priceless to the club and no amount could have realistically tempted them; how things change.
Kieran Tierney
The first down the tunnel after the post-match lap of appreciation. Whilst others stayed to enjoy some time with friends and family, Kieran Tierney, accompanied by Rob Holding, headed down the tunnel.
If that is his goodbye it perhaps symbolises how his time at Arsenal ended, with a whimper. Arteta opted to start both Takehiro Tomiyasu and then Jakub Kiwior over the Scotsman when he appeared the natural choice; these hints have told the story well ahead of the end of the season.
He is a very sellable asset, and Arsenal know it. There’s interest from Premier League clubs and Edu could well eye to turn one of the losers of the season into a winner of the window.
Arsenal’s critics
Be it those that remain staunchly of the view Mikel Arteta is not the right man for the job, or the many rival fans that have tried to undermine the Gunners' season, Arsenal are a side which are only on the up. It’s taken some time but the momentum is with them now and next season is filled with only excitement.
There simply is not reason not to have positive feeling about the future of the club. The messaging has often included the 'Always forward' tagline and in fairness that is exactly what they have delivered, to make any remaining bashers of the club sound rather questionable.
Tottenham Hotspur
Remember the days when Antonio Conte joining Tottenham was to solidify Spurs’ place above Arsenal in the table and to take them on to bigger and better things while their north London rivals languished?
Yeah, me neither.
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