The Gunners are baring their teeth. Far from the collective image that has long clung to the London side, Mikel Arteta's team have revealed this season a side of their game that had been left aside since the Spaniard took charge.
While Arsenal have been recognised for several seasons as a sophisticated version of positional football - seen as one of Guardiola’s most faithful disciples - the club have gradually evolved towards a much more pragmatic style of play.
First, by methodically exploiting set pieces, which became a central weapon in their project, and then, little by little, by developing a 'dirty' style of football that has sparked reactions in England, where some media now openly talk about a team on the edge of cheating.
Today, Arsenal are one of the best defensive teams in Europe - conceding very few goals - and have become ruthlessly effective on set pieces, which over the months have become the true signature of the London club.
But that would be underestimating football. Because yes, this sport allows you to play with the rules, and Arsenal know it - or at least, they push them to their limits.
Time management, seeking fouls in predefined areas, tactical interventions to break up the opponent’s transitions: the dazzling project of Arteta’s early years, that of the 'Baby Gunners' in love with beautiful football, has turned into something more pragmatic, more calculated. Welcome to the era of the 'Bad Gunners'.
The art of slowing football in the age of acceleration
If there’s one thing Arsenal has turned into a discipline this season, it’s this: wasting time when needed. A strategy that, far from being anecdotal, allowed them to win their first Premier League title in 22 years. Known for several seasons for his technical and tactical qualities, Arteta has made the paradoxical choice to blend positional play with unapologetic pragmatism - literally playing with the rules of the beautiful game.
Once play is stopped, the Gunners don’t rush to restart. The ball is moved away, and throw-ins are deliberately delayed. These gestures may seem trivial, but they are precisely their strength. Ranked 30th for effective playing time in the Champions League, the London club knows exactly what ground it’s treading - and fully embraces it.
Where modern football seeks to speed up, press, and string together high-intensity sequences, Arsenal chooses to slow things down. And to profit from it.
The paradox is clear: for a dominant team, the solution is to play less. But behind this counterintuitive logic lies a simple truth - controlling the tempo means imposing your own. Never being forced to follow someone else’s.
And when Diego Simeone - the master of the dark arts - found himself up against his own game at the Emirates, facing a team that made breaking up the rhythm one of its guiding principles, Cholo lost his cool. Atletico’s players seemed unsettled, not understanding what was happening to them. Koke, a seasoned professional in the art of slowing the game, was beaten at his own game.
34 goals: A number that tells the story of a system
But at the final whistle, the Argentine quickly chose to accept it rather than sulk. Acknowledging that time-wasting strategies are an integral part of football, he paid sincere tribute to his opponent: "It’s part of football. We all know that in those final minutes, you want time to go by quickly. Arteta’s work is incredible, and they have the resources to achieve what they set out to do. I’m happy for them - they deserve it, they’ve worked very well."
Last March, just after Arsenal vs Brighton, The Athletic revealed a striking statistic: the Gunners spent 30 minutes and 51 seconds putting the ball back into play. An eternity - and a 1-0 win to show for it.
The details are telling: Declan Rice waited up to 62 seconds before taking a free kick, 69 on another. Cristhian Mosquera took 44 seconds between the ball going out and his goal kick. As for Arsenal’s first corner, it didn’t come until the 63rd minute - and took over a minute to be taken, confirming their average of 44.5 seconds per corner recorded by Opta, the highest in the Premier League.
34 goals scored from set pieces this season. The number is dizzying and puts Arsenal at the top of a European hierarchy that few dispute today. But what truly sets the Gunners apart from other set-piece specialists isn’t just the quality of their takers or the precision of their routines: it’s the intent behind the result. Arsenal don't just endure set pieces. Arsenal provoke them.
Seeking contact, amplifying duels, deliberately breaking the tempo at the right moment: everything is thought out, calibrated, and rehearsed in training to bring the match into a zone where Arteta’s men excel.
It’s no coincidence that Arsenal are among the teams spending the most time attacking from set pieces in the Champions League. These situations aren’t a lucky byproduct of their play; they’re a destination the club methodically aims to reach.
Daniel Siebert: The true variable in the final
The other side of this system, less spectacular but just as telling, concerns the management of defensive transitions. Against Europe’s top teams, Arsenal are among those who commit the most tactical fouls after losing the ball.
The goal is clear: snuff out the counterattack before it gathers speed, break the rhythm, take away any emotional momentum from the opponent, and allow the team to reorganise before the danger becomes real. That’s also how you become regarded across Europe as the best defence in the Champions League.
The fouls are deliberate, accepted, calculated. A momentary vulnerability turned into a tactical pause. An uncomfortable idea for the opponent, but perfectly integrated into Arsenal’s plan. Behind every whistle won in this context is, in reality, a small act of reclaiming the match. Arteta knows exactly what his team is playing for. And that may be his greatest strength.
But in a football where every contact can be calculated, one variable can still escape Arteta’s control: the man with the whistle. Because playing with the rules also means accepting a simple reality: someone decides where the line is drawn.
And that line, on May 30th in Budapest, will have a face: that of German referee Daniel Siebert.
UEFA have appointed the 42-year-old to officiate this final between Arsenal and PSG. It will already be his third meeting with the Gunners this season in the Champions League.
He was the referee for the first leg of the quarter-final against Sporting as well as the second leg of the semi-final against Atletico, both ending in success for the Londoners.
His refereeing against Atletico even drew sharp criticism from some Madrid media after several controversial decisions. A detail that is anything but minor. Because when a team builds part of its identity on mastering the grey areas of the game, the referee’s interpretation almost becomes a tactical component in its own right.
