The thoughts of an Arsenal fan watching his side this season

Story By Lucas Michael

It's been a disappointing season for Arsenal. A third consecutive second-place finish is nothing to be frowned upon, but after the way last season ended, the Gunners were surely hoping for more.

I could write a piece blaming referees and the football gods for being so cruel to us this season, but there's little point (at least according to my therapist). We were outclassed by a fantastic Liverpool team and still made it to a Champions League semi-final.

That said, our inability to kill games off led us to draw the second-most matches in the league, and injuries to key players (Saka, Havertz, Ødegaard, Gabriel, etc.) played their part too.

Here is the Arsenal 2024/25 season review. 

Photo by Nur Photo/Getty images

August

Expectations were high ahead of the opener against Wolves, and Arsenal got off to the perfect start. Bukayo Saka and Kai Havertz continued their strong form with a goal and an assist each—earning me plenty of fantasy points as well!
David Raya made an early save-of-the-season contender as Arsenal edged past Aston Villa, but our luck ran out against Brighton. A controversial Declan Rice red card was punished as João Pedro equalised, just before Riccardo Calafiori made his debut off the bench. It finished 1-1.
A frustrating way to end an otherwise positive month.

September

Martin Ødegaard suffered an ankle injury on international duty—just before a crucial North London Derby. With Rice suspended, Arteta was left relying on two "veterans" (in footballing terms), Jorginho and Thomas Partey, to run the midfield.

Thankfully, Arsenal's prowess from set pieces paid off again, as Gabriel rose above the Spurs defence to head in the only goal.

The Champions League campaign opened with a 0-0 draw away to Atalanta, where Raya saved a penalty. His penalty-saving form would not continue.

Three days later, Arsenal faced the champions in a thriller. Calafiori scored a screamer, Gabriel nodded in again, and Trossard saw red. Mourinho-esque tactics in the second half nearly worked—until John Stones equalised in the 98th minute.

A 5-1 Carabao Cup win over Bolton was followed by a frantic 4-2 win over Leicester. On paper, it looks routine. In reality, it was 2-2 in the 93rd minute. Classic Arsenal.

Photo by Visionhaus/Getty images

October

Things started brightly with a 2-0 win over PSG, thanks to a poor showing from Donnarumma (more on him later).
A 3-1 win over Southampton was followed by the first loss of the season—2-0 against an in-form Bournemouth after a Saliba red card.

A huge early title clash came against Liverpool. Saka and Van Dijk both scored inside 20 minutes. Mikel Merino gave Arsenal the lead before half-time, but Mo Salah struck again to share the spoils.

November

Consecutive 1-0 defeats to Newcastle and Inter Milan exposed Arsenal's lack of cutting edge. A 1-1 draw with Chelsea didn't help, as Liverpool widened the gap.

After the break, a 3-0 win over Nottingham Forest saw 16-year-old Ethan Nwaneri score his first league goal. Arsenal then exploded for 10 goals in two matches—5-1 against Sporting CP, and a chaotic 5-2 half-time lead over West Ham that included Arsenal's only two penalties all season.

December

The Gunners dominated Man United: Saliba and Timber scored headers in a 2-0 win. Saliba struck again against Fulham, but it ended 1-1 despite Arsenal's dominance.

A 3-0 win over Monaco marked the emergence of Myles Lewis-Skelly, who excelled as a left-back out of necessity. A rare positive.

Meanwhile, 77% possession and 13 shots against Everton somehow ended in a 0-0 draw.

A double-header against Palace followed, with Jesus scoring a hat-trick in the Carabao Cup semi-final and a brace in a 5-1 league win. But Saka's hamstring injury meant he wouldn't return until March.

The month ended with Havertz scoring the winner vs Ipswich, as Arsenal sat second heading into the new year.

January

Despite conceding first, Arsenal began 2025 with a 3-1 win over Brentford. Jesus scored—but it would be his last before suffering an ACL injury.

Lightning struck twice vs Brighton: Arsenal led, dominated, then a dodgy refereeing call led to João Pedro equalising. It ended 1-1... again.

Then came the collapse: a 2-0 Carabao Cup semi-final first-leg loss to Newcastle, followed by an FA Cup penalty shootout defeat to United.

Fans melted down online. Luckily, Spurs were next—a 2-1 win calmed nerves. But Villa came from 2-0 down to draw 2-2, exposing the Partey-at-right-back experiment.

Two UCL wins secured Arsenal's spot in the quarters. A 1-0 win vs Wolves was marred by controversy, with Michael Oliver ruling a foul 90 yards from goal as a denial of a scoring chance.

Photo by Mike Hewitt/ Getty images 

February

A recent history of heavy losses to Man City made the 5-1 win even sweeter. Lewis-Skelly bossed Haaland; Nwaneri scored a screamer.

A third defeat to Newcastle ended all domestic cup hopes. A Dubai trip followed—but brought more injury woes. Havertz suffered a season-ending injury blocking a shot; Martinelli was also sidelined.

Arsenal didn't make a single January signing. This left the attack down to Trossard, a teenager, Raheem Sterling, and... Win the dog.

Thankfully, Merino stepped up. He scored twice off the bench against Leicester and weirdly became the team's starting striker.

No goals followed in the next two matches: a 1-0 home loss to West Ham and a 0-0 away to Forest.

March

Back in Europe, Arsenal hammered PSV 7-1 with just one senior attacker on the pitch. Several records were broken, and a tie vs a Madrid side loomed.

Raya's heroics preserved a draw vs United. Sterling grabbed two assists in the return leg. Yes, miracles do happen.

Merino scored the only goal in a 1-0 win over Chelsea.

April

Saka returned and scored in a 2-1 win over Fulham. Arsenal said goodbye (and good riddance) to Goodison Park with a 1-1 draw.

Then came the night of dreams: Declan Rice scored two outrageous free kicks in a 3-0 win over Real Madrid—one of the best nights in Emirates history.
Naturally, Arsenal followed it up with a 1-1 draw against Brentford that nobody seemed to care about.

The supposed Madrid remontada turned out to be an April Fools' joke. A 2-1 win saw Arsenal into their first UCL semi-final since 2009.

Liverpool had essentially sealed the league, so all eyes turned to PSG. A 4-0 win over Ipswich and another draw against Palace set the stage.

No Gabriel (injured), no problem? Sadly, yes problem. Donnarumma saved everything, and Dembele—absent in the earlier game—scored the only goal.

May

Will this season ever end?

A 2-1 loss to Bournemouth followed a familiar pattern: lead, miss chances, concede twice.

Then came the big one: the second leg vs PSG. Ruiz and Hakimi scored, and Saka got a late consolation. One highlight? Vitinha produced one of the worst penalty run-ups ever, and Raya finally guessed the right way.

A Champions League semi-final run is something to be proud of—especially considering the injury crisis. Arteta was one attacker away from subbing himself on.

The season ended well: a 2-2 draw with Liverpool saw Arsenal actually come back for once. Then, they finally beat Newcastle at the fourth attempt.

In the final match, Kieran Tierney scored in what looks to be his last Arsenal appearance—a 2-1 win over Southampton.

Conclusion

Honestly? I've seen better seasons. But I've also seen worse.

Photo by David Price/Getty images

The highs were incredible (Real Madrid, 5-1 vs City, Merino the Striker). The lows were brutal. Still, to be disappointed with second place and a Champions League semi-final shows how far we've come. Four years ago, we finished just above Leeds and Everton.

Injuries and a lack of goals cost Arsenal big time. Fix those, and this team could finally end its trophy drought.

Arsenal's 2024/25 season was chaotic, frustrating, and beautiful in patches.

At least we're not Manchester United.