You might call Mikel Arteta a marginal gains merchant, you might call the Emirates Highbury Library.
You might see Arteta’s quest to improve the home atmosphere as something of an unstoppable force meeting an immovable object.
Look, the Emirates doesn’t evoke the dizzying rush of Anfield or the kamikaze bear pit of the Stadium of Light, we have our own thing (and an excellent home record).
Arsenal fans appreciate artistry. We respond when coaxed by an act of brilliance. But marginal gains are ever more important when competing against the mismatched resources across the Premier League elite, just ask the ‘big six’ haters.
It goes without saying that atmosphere can contribute to sporting success – how many points does the fear factor of St James’ Park earn Newcastle per season? Sunderland will surely stay up too, in part because of the difficulty teams have faced when playing them away from home. Arteta knows this all too well.
Unstoppable force, immovable object. The Emirates atmosphere in the last few seasons has been… better, particularly compared to those sterile late Wenger years or the briefly painful Emery tenure. Arteta and the powers that be have worked hard on hype videos, crowd displays, light shows – to varying degrees of success.
We recently received the news that Arsenal would be introducing safe standing in the Clock End for use next season, and in the North Bank the following summer. I welcome this! Where I sit, often people get into disputes because some want to stand for the whole match, meaning some have their view obscured. Infighting in the crowd is surely not a marginal gain.
I understand that some people are physically unable or unwilling to stand for long periods, hence the need for designated standing areas – where those who are keen can stand.
One aspect of Tottenham’s (sad to say it) impressive stadium project, is the way they’ve integrated safe standing as one detail among others, shape, pitch, acoustics, to improve atmosphere. Of course, you do need something on the pitch to get excited about. Regardless, Arsenal implementing safe standing is a sign of a club that is inward looking, flexible and willing to try things.
You can hear more from Scarlet at the Goal Difference podcast
