"If you’d have told me Arsenal weren’t going to win the win the league again for such a long time, I’d have said you were mad" Ray Parlour on Arsenal’s 22-year wait for the Premier League

LONDON, ENGLAND - MAY 24: Declan Rice of Arsenal kisses the Premier League Trophy after their team's victory in the Premier League match between Crystal Palace and Arsenal at Selhurst Park on May 24, 2026 in London, England. (Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images).

It took 22 long years, but Arsenal returned to the summit of English football last season, when they eased to the Premier League title.

This title drought stretched back to the days of Arsene Wenger's Invincibles, and for former Gunners midfielder Ray Parlour - a member of that 2004 title-winning squad - the club's wait for the title only made this latest success all the sweeter.

And while Parlour admits he did not fathom the idea that the club would have had to wait that long when he celebrated that last success, he believes last season's title was a fitting reward for that at the club.

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Parlour on Arsenal ending their title drought

"I was so over the moon that they’d done it," Parlour tells FourFourTwo as he reflects on the significance of last year's win.

"It was a big relief, because if you’d said to me 22 years ago, back in 2004, that they weren’t going to win it again for such a long time, I’d have said you were mad."

Ray Parlour was part of the 2003/04 Premier League-winning side (Image credit: Getty Images)

Arsenal had made a habit of near-misses in recent years, registering three consecutive second-place finishes before getting over the hump last season, adding to a prior 11 top-four finishes since that 2003/04 triumph.

For Parlour, this all underlines how difficult it is to consistently compete for English football's biggest domestic prize.

"It shows how hard it is to win it," he continues. "I was thrilled for the squad."

And while Parlour is quick to praise the playing squad for the victory, he believes the credit should be shared around the club.

"The owners and the people who run things behind the scenes deserve plaudits as well, because we all see how things work in football in this day and age," he continues.

Arteta snapped a run of three straight second-place finishes last year (Image credit: Getty Images)

Parlour is also keenly aware that patience has become increasingly rare in the modern game, with Arsenal bucking this trend and allowing Arteta to continue to build his squad despite repeated near-misses.

"Most of the time, when things go wrong, or when a manager fails to win something, they don’t stay in their job.

"But Arsenal really stuck by Mikel Arteta and they backed him all the way."