Arsenal have come a long way since Mikel Arteta was appointed head coach in December 2019. 

Unai Emery, now in the Aston Villa hotseat, had been dismissed after seven games without a win and the mood around the Emirates was grim.

In stepped the former club captain and — a little over three years later — the Gunners find themselves embroiled in a Premier League title race. 

As Arteta’s Arsenal prepare to travel to Emery’s Villa, we chart the North Londoners' evolution since the former’s arrival.

Implementing his principles

Arteta was unequivocal upon taking the reins at Arsenal — he would not stand for disunity.

The Basque coach, then just 37, set about changing the culture at the club and implementing his principles on every member of staff and explained his ideals after signing in 2019. 

He said: "I want to do things my way but by convincing them that it's the right way for everybody to live better.

"I don't want them hiding. I want people to take responsibility for their jobs and I want people who deliver passion and energy in the football club. 

"Anyone who doesn't buy into this, or that has a negative effect, is not good enough for this environment or this culture. 

"It is first of all about how they live and some respect issues that have to be addressed but, when that happens, if they want to follow that, they are in. If not, they are out."

Personnel overhaul

Those hard lines led to a dramatic overhaul of the playing staff. Some, such as Shkodran Mustafi, Sokratis Papastathopoulos and Sead Kolasinac, were simply not up to scratch. 

Others, like Mesut Ozil and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, clashed with the disciplinarian and were duly moved on. 

The quality and focus of Arsenal’s recruitment improved significantly under the watchful eye of Arteta and technical director Edu. 

Of course, there have been blips — the spectacularly poor signing of Willian, for example — but on the whole, the list of incomings reads positively. 

Gabriel Magalhaes, Martin Odegaard, Ben White, Aaron Ramsdale, Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko have all been outstanding additions — a welcome relief after some scattergun transfer activity under the previous regime.

Playing from the back

The improvement in personnel, particularly in defence, has led to a vast improvement in Arsenal’s ability to play out from the back. 

Emery, like Arteta, insisted that the Gunners build from their own third but the former enjoyed far less success with that tactic. 

The team was frequently caught out as they attempted to play past the press. Perhaps that was down to the lack of quality, though Emery must also take responsibility for his part in the team’s struggles.

Arsenal still look to pass their way out of defence but they appear a team transformed. 

They are not perfect — their 3-1 defeat at the hands of Manchester City last time out was a reminder of that — but Arteta’s men did record 64% possession against Pep Guardiola’s machine-like outfit. That is a testament to their newfound quality on the ball.

2-3-5

Arteta has steadily moved away from the system he employed in his early days as Arsenal manager, a more pragmatic approach borne of necessity.

The team’s on-the-ball shape now resembles the 2-3-5 that Manchester City and Liverpool have frequently employed in recent seasons. 

The full-backs are key to implementing this. Zinchenko tucks into midfield from left-back while, on the right, either Ben White or Takehiro Tomiyasu shuffles across to provide yet another central option.

This shape provides Arsenal with solidity, allowing the five players ahead of them to attack with freedom. 

It is a far more refined system than was seen at the Emirates under Emery, with the individual brilliance of Aubameyang often bailing the Gunners out of tight spots.

Feel-good factor

Arteta has been a divisive figure for much of his time at Arsenal. 

An early FA Cup victory lifted the mood around the club but a subsequent run of poor results soured it once more, giving birth to the infamous ‘Arteta Out’ section of the fanbase. 

However, the team have steadily improved under his guidance and fans have flocked back to the Emirates in full voice after a spell in which a plethora of empty seats began to emerge under Emery.

Whether or not Arsenal are able to win the title this season, Arteta has certainly won the majority of supporters over and he has transformed an ailing, broken club into genuine Premier League contenders.

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