JEREMY CROSS COLUMN: With one trophy since taking charge in 2019, Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has to go from being a good manager to a great one this season
12:00, 27 Oct 2025Updated 12:01, 27 Oct 2025
Jeremy Cross
Jeremy joined the Daily Star in 2010 as Manchester football correspondent and for more than a decade has served as our Chief Sports Writer. He provides expert coverage on Manchester United and Manchester City, the Premier League as a whole, and the England football team. Jeremy has covered football, rugby and cricket World Cups, as well as Wimbledon, the golf majors and the Olympics.
Mikel Arteta
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Mikel Arteta cannot blow another title challenge
Mikel Arteta has spent too long being the bridesmaid, instead of a bride. But the Arsenal boss will never get a better chance to win the title than the one he has now.
Because his team and the Premier League trophy, appear to be a match made in heaven. There is still a long, long way to go.
But even before Halloween, it feels like Arsenal are capable of avoiding another horror story, when it comes to getting across the line.
Arsenal have flattered to deceive in the previous two campaigns. Threatened to claim the ultimate prize, then faded in the final weeks when it mattered most.
But intelligent managers and sides learn from the past. And the perfect storm is brewing in north London, where Arsenal are concerned.
Arsenal extended their lead at the top of the Premier League table
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Arsenal extended their lead at the top of the Premier League table(Image: Arsenal FC via Getty Images)
Arteta's men look nigh on unbeatable. They haven't lost in the last 10 games in all competitions. They look at the table to discover Bournemouth, Tottenham and newly-promoted Sunderland are their nearest challengers.
They are six points ahead of Manchester City, and seven clear of reigning champions Liverpool. Who both lost last weekend, making it just about the perfect one for Arteta. Liverpool and City are not the relentless powerhouses they used to be.
Arsenal, meanwhile, have conceded just three league goals all season, and no-one has breached them in the last five games. And right here is the reason Arsenal should go on to end their long wait to be crowned champions again.
Arsenal have been the bridesmaid for the past couple of seasons
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Arsenal have been the bridesmaid for the past couple of seasons(Image: AFP via Getty Images)
Arsenal scored 17 fewer goals than Liverpool last season, which cost them the title. But the fact is, that when a team like Arsenal is conceding so few goals, it doesn't have to score as many at the opposite end to win game.
The 1-0 win over Crystal Palace proves the point. Defences win titles. It might be one of the oldest cliches in the game, but it's also one of the truest.
And on current form, Arsenal look set to match or even break the incredible record Jose Mourinho's Chelsea set back in 2005, when conceding just 15 league goals en-route to becoming champions.
Throw in the fact that the likes of Martin Odegaard, Noni Madueke, Gabriel Jesus and Kai Havertz have still to come back from injuries, and it's safe to assume Arsenal's goal ratio will also improve as the season goes on.
Which is a frightening thought for those looking to catch them at the top of the table. Almost as frightening as the prospect of Arsenal not going on to get the job done.
More than two decades have passed since a club steeped in a rich history and tradition of success, has been crowned English champions.
Mikel Arteta
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Mikel Arteta has to win the Premier League this season(Image: Arsenal FC via Getty Images)
The long wait has to end. Failure cannot be an option for Arteta this time round. He has won one FA Cup since taking charge in 2019, which is nowhere near good enough.
Despite his meagre amount of success, people have the general opinion that he remains a good manager. But not a great one, because those are measured by the trophies they win.
So if Arteta doesn't go on to lead his team to the biggest domestic prize available come May, it should be the last chance he is given at Arsenal.
Steve Smith
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Steve Smith will lead Australia in first Ashes Test in Perth(Image: Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images)
It has to be one of the most remarkable stories of sporting redemption.
Steve Smith brought shame on himself, his country and his sport when caught cheating during a Test between Australia and South Africa at Newlands in 2018.
'Sandpapergate' left him in tears, and sacked as skipper. But Smith is now set to replace Pat Cummins as captain again for the first Ashes Test.
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Cummins will miss the game in Perth due to a back problem. It won't be the first time Smith has stood in, since his humiliation in Cape Town.
But it will be the first time he has led the Aussies in such an iconic game. The spotlight will be on him, as will England's travelling 'Barmy Army'.
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And if the sight of a convicted cheat leading the opposition doesn't give England even more incentive to win - then nothing will.