Arsenal have come a long way during the Emirates era: Here's why 

Nearly 20 years on from leaving Highbury, the promise we were made in 2006 is finally being fulfilled says Nick Manfredi 

When Arsenal made the move from Highbury to our spanking new state-of-the-art abode, we were told it was a necessary move if Arsenal were to be able to financially compete with the likes of Bayern Munich. 

For the next 15 years, it is fair to say that promise didn’t look like being fulfilled.

Less than a year after the move to The Emirates, legendary chairman David Dein was forced out of the club by the board and the following decade saw a prominent power struggle between our two biggest shareholders, Alisher Usmanov and Stan Kroenke.

The financial constraints brought on by the stadium costs meant we were very much struggling to compete with the Bayern Munich’s and Real Madrid’s, and we were constantly having to sell our top assets to our rivals.

This of course brought immense pressure on Arsene Wenger, who for all his faults did a great job in securing top four year after year, often after it had been in huge doubt for much of the season. 

But eventually the top four finishes stopped, and Wenger was let go. We had the Unai Emery disaster then a suave Spaniard walked through the door.

A former club captain, a rookie manager eager to prove himself.

We all know what has happened since but the journey from mediocrity to arguably being the best side in Europe has not been all plain sailing, nor has it been driven 100% by Mikel Arteta.

To be fair to KSE they did not take full ownership of the club until September 2018, months after Wenger had gone.

If you look at what we have spent on players from summer 2019 onwards the difference between the past six years and the 15 or so years which preceded it is night and day.

The point is almost 20 years on from leaving Highbury, the promise we were made in 2006 is finally being fulfilled.

We can afford the top players. We are the most attractive club in England for players in many respects.

We are yet to get over the line with this team, but it now looks to be a question of when rather than if. Perhaps the starkest of differences is the fact that all our players are desperate to stay and win the biggest of prizes with Arsenal.

When we hear rumours of Real Madrid or Barca “sniffing around” one of our players our pulses no longer quicken.

We scoff and laugh at the sheer desperation of it all.

We are now the blueprint for many clubs who not so long ago seemed to be in a different galaxy to us.

Would we ever catch up to them? Would we ever return to the glory years, or would they forever remain a distant memory from another lifetime, almost as though they had happened to somebody else’s club.

But strong title challenges, last season’s thumping victories over Manchester City and of course that incredible two-legged display over Real Madrid showed that Arsenal were truly back.

Doing it in games of that magnitude is always the sternest of tests.

Tonight will be another chance to show that.

When we step out onto the pitch with a European giant in Bayern Munich, this time we will be their equals.

While the stakes for this game are not as high as it would be if it were later in the competition, we will face Bayern as one genuine contender to win the Champions League against another.

Forget the last two decades, right now we stand toe to toe with teams such as Bayern, and that has always been the goal.

There’s not much point in having a world class stadium if you don’t have a world class team.

That comes with its own set of problems.

No one wants to pay money to go and watch Tottenham, no matter how many cheese rooms they have or how many Beyonce concerts they’ve held.

We are where we want to be and now, we must stay there. COYG!!