Soak wolfberry in a thermos cup, this time Arsenal has turned the Premier League into a health bureau

1. The thermos broke at the Princes Stadium on May 8, and Arsenal's Champions League journey was frozen at 1-3. Saka's volleyball scored in the 76th minute failed to illuminate the darkness of Arsenal's missed the Champions League trophy for 19 consecutive years. The banner of "WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS" in the stands was soaked in the rain, which looked like the broken expectations of fans - this season, Arsenal lost to ten-player Manchester United in the FA Cup penalty battle, was swept 4-0 by Newcastle in the semi-finals of the League Cup, and watched Liverpool win the championship in four rounds in advance, and fell at Paris in the Champions League semi-finals, completely achieving a bleak ending of "the four majors are empty".

This is not the first time Arsenal has collapsed in a critical battle. In the 35th round of the league, when news of Gabriel's hamstring strain came, the central defender combination on the bench had become 19-year-old Hill and 34-year-old Holding. This "grandfather takes grandson" defense configuration allowed Arsenal to score two goals in a row while leading, and eventually lost 1-2. The wave of injuries is like a plague. Starting from the torn cruciate ligament of Jesus, seven main players including Havertz, Jorginho, Thomas fell one after another. On Arteta's tactical board, there are fewer and fewer tactical circles that can be drawn.

2. The "boy scout" that has been born in youth training

In the ruins, the 18-year-old Rollston became one of the few highlights. The central defender, who came from Arsenal's youth training, completed 11 clearances and 4 interceptions in the FA Cup match against Manchester United, and scored as high as 8.9 points after the game. His rise confirms the success of Arsenal's post-00s training program - this season, the "Youth Trident" composed of Saka, Martinelli and Odegao contributed 38 goals and 27 assists, accounting for 62% of the team's total offensive output. What is even more surprising is that the 15-year-old midfielder prodigy, Doman, has trained with the first team. Arteta said bluntly: "His passing vision reminds me of Fabregas back then." This kind of youth training outbreak is not accidental. The "Technology + Youth" dual-engine program launched in 2023 will equip Arsenal's Kearney base with an AI physical fitness monitoring system. By analyzing the player's muscle group movement data, Saka's speed training was refined to an incremental adjustment of 0.3 kilometers per hour. Data shows that Saka's average sprints this season increased by 17% compared to last season, which led to the famous scene of him eating Ashraf raw in the Champions League.

3. "Bone-scraping and curing poison" in the transfer market

When fans were still lamenting about the Champions League elimination, Arsenal's transfer window had quietly opened. 60 million euros activate Real Sociedad midfielder Zubimendi's termination clause. The Spanish international, known as "New Busquets", will inject long-lost hardness into the Arsenal midfielder. What is even more exciting is that the trade for Portuguese sports striker Yorke has entered the final stage - if this super shooter with 52 goals and 15 assists in a single season, if he can join, it will completely solve the stubborn problem of Arsenal's "with ball control but no end". Behind this series of operations is Arsenal's financial health. In the 2023-2024 season, the club achieved a profit of £4.3 million with Champions League bonuses and commercial sponsorship, which is the first annual profit since 2017. So far in the summer window, Arsenal has returned 85 million pounds by selling players such as Nketia and Cedric, providing sufficient ammunition for the signing. But the management's ambitions are more than that. They are planning to sign Dortmund midfielder Gittens in the form of "renting first and buying" to upgrade the lineup with a flexible operating mode.

4. Arteta's "Health philosophy"

In the shadow of a series of defeats, Arteta showed a rare calmness. He introduced a "yoga recovery course" in his training, requiring players to perform 30 minutes of mindful meditation every day. This "Buddhist" management method has allowed Arsenal's average running distance this season to increase by 1.2 kilometers compared to last season, while the number of red cards has decreased by 60%. What is even more breakthrough is that Arteta combines the three-guard system with the "double midfield barrier" to complement Thomas and Odegao - the former is responsible for interception (3.8 steals per game), and the latter leads the ball (62 accurate passes per game). This configuration increases Arsenal's possession rate to 65%, ranking first in the Premier League.

But the shortcomings of this system are also obvious: the lack of a real center. Arsenal scored only 64 goals in 35 league rounds this season, 17 goals less than the champion Liverpool, of which less than 30% of the goals scored in the penalty area. Arteta did not have no attempt to change. He once let Havertz stand on the front line, but the Germans' success rate of confrontation was only 38%, and he finally had no choice but to give up. This tactical dilemma may only be solved by Yorke's joining.

Arsenal's bus is heading towards London as Liverpool lifts the Premier League trophy at Anfield. Arteta's frowning brow reflected in the car window, and the green faces of Rollston and Doman on the bench. The four majors of this season are gone. Perhaps it is the beginning of Arsenal's phoenix nirvana - the "woolberry" in youth training is slowly making its taste, the "new tea" in the transfer market is about to be injected into the cup, and Arteta's "health philosophy" is reshaping the team's muscles and bones.

Perhaps, Arsenal's revival is like the fog in London - it seems hazy, but the sun will eventually penetrate. When Zubimendi builds a barrier in the midfield, when Yorke breaks the city in the penalty area, and when the AI ​​system accurately calculates every pass route, the "Guller" who once terrified Europe will eventually embark on the road to championship with the new formula in the thermos. After all, in the stands at Emirates Stadium, the song "Hot Stuff" never stopped; on the training ground at Kearney's base, the teenagers' sneakers were still covered in dirt.