Dear Mikel Arteta Amatriain,
This letter comes at a moment where your Arsenal legacy is no longer a projection; it’s a reality unfolding in real time.
And yet, I’m not writing this as a journalist.
I’m writing this as someone who grew up watching you long before you ever stepped foot in North London.
I knew you before Arsenal did
My introduction to you didn’t come through Arsenal. It came through Everton.
My godfather was an Everton fan, and that’s where I first saw you properly. You and Tim Cahill; the chemistry, the timing, the understanding. There was a rhythm to everything you did. You didn’t just play midfield; you conducted it.
And I loved that.
I still do.
Because even when I play now, I play in midfield. Not just because of the position, but because of what it represents. Responsibility. Control. Influence. The ability to shape everything around you.
That came from watching you.
And strangely, it didn’t stop there. The way you carry yourself now; the standards, the obsession, the detail; it’s something that bleeds into life beyond football. Into how I write. How I think. How I lead in my own small way.
That’s influence.
And it’s why there’s a growing sense, not just inside Arsenal but around it, that something bigger is happening here.
Why this letter to Mikel Arteta matters now
When you arrived at Arsenal, it didn’t feel like the start of something.
It felt like the middle of something broken.
We had lost identity. The end of Arsene Wenger’s era took more than a manager; it took a feeling. The years that followed were filled with moments, but not meaning. We showed up, we watched, we hoped; but deep down, we knew.
And if I’m honest, there was a point where supporting Arsenal felt like routine rather than belief.
Then you changed that.
Not with noise. Not with promises. With standards.
You made decisions people didn’t understand. You let go of players people thought were untouchable. You demanded something from the club that it hadn’t demanded of itself in years.
And I questioned it.
A lot of us did.
But you never did.
You saw something before we could. A version of Arsenal that didn’t just compete, but controlled. A team that didn’t just want to win, but expected to. And slowly, almost stubbornly, you built it.
The pride came back. The belief came back. The feeling came back.
Arsenal started to feel like Arsenal again.
"22-year title wait ended, Wenger did 22 years at Arsenal, Kroupi number 22, Arteta was 22 when Arsenal won title in 2004" 👀
David Ornstein gives a prediction for the Champions League final based on the significance of the number 22 for Arsenal 🔴 pic.twitter.com/kideeI1OPp
— Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews) May 29, 2026
Now you stand on the edge of immortality
And now, you stand on the edge of something that Arsenal have never quite been able to reach.
You’ve already done what many thought would take longer. Ending a 22-year wait for the league wasn’t just success; it was restoration. It put your name alongside the most important figures this club has ever had.
But this is different.
And ahead of the Champions League final against PSG, it feels closer than it ever has before; almost inevitable.
This is the one that has always lingered just out of reach. The one that Herbert Chapman never touched. The one George Graham never claimed. The one Arsene Wenger, for all his brilliance, could never quite hold.
And I can already hear the conversations starting. The debates about where you stand, about what you’ve already achieved, and what still lies ahead.
Because if you win the Champions League with Arsenal, you don’t just enter the conversation; you end it.
You won’t just be respected.
You’ll be immortal.
And more than anything, you’ll be loved. Not just for what you’ve won, but for what you’ve restored.
It��s why there’s a growing sense that this Arsenal side isn’t just prepared for the moment, but capable of defining it.
So this isn’t just a thank you.
It’s recognition.
For rebuilding the identity.
For restoring the belief.
And for reminding people like me why we fell in love with this club in the first place.
Yours Truly,
Lachlan & The Read Arsenal Family