Saka: They’re not laughing at Arsenal now
Saka: They’re not laughing at Arsenal now Bukayo Saka says Arsenal’s critics are “not laughing anymore” after the club ended their 22-year wait for the Premier League title. Bukayo Saka has delivered the line that will become as immortal as Declan Rice ‘s ‘It’s not done’, saying the people who mocked the club’s title challenge are “not laughing anymore” after Mikel Arteta ’s side finally ended a 22-year wait for the Premier League . For three years, Arsenal were accused of “bottling” title races, and after the defeat at Manchester City on 19 April, the old doubts returned quickly enough for many.
The questions were familiar, whether they had the nerve, whether the pressure would break them, whether City would simply do what City had done so often before, fuelled on in 115 different ways. Instead, Arsenal won their next four league games without conceding a goal. City, however, drew at Everton , then drew again at Bournemouth , and the race was over before the final weekend.
Thank you Eli Junior Krupi ! Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images Arsenal’s players and staff gathered at London Colney on Tuesday night to watch City’s 1-1 draw at the Vitality Stadium , a result that left Arsenal four points clear and confirmed them as champions for the first time since 2004. At Emirates Stadium , tens of thousands of supporters gathered outside to celebrate with fireworks and flares.
Inside the club, the release was just as obvious. Arteta has installed a blacked-out Premier League trophy at Colney, designed to light up only when Arsenal finally won the title. In footage posted by Jurrien Timber on Instagram , Saka stood in front of it and told the room exactly what the moment meant.
“Light that up,” Saka said. “Let me tell you something. Twenty-two years, 22 years.