2018–19 Arsenal F.C. season

Arsenal

2018–19 season
Chairman	Chips Keswick
Head coach	Unai Emery
Stadium	Emirates Stadium
Premier League	5th
FA Cup	Fourth round
EFL Cup	Quarter-final
UEFA Europa League	Runners-up
Top goalscorer	League: Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (22) All: Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (31)
Home colours Away colours Third colours

The 2018–19 season was Arsenal's 27th season in the Premier League, 102nd overall season in the top flight and 99th consecutive season in the top flight of English football. The club participated in the Premier League and the UEFA Europa League, and participated in the FA Cup and the EFL Cup.

This was the Arsenal's first season in 22 years without manager Arsène Wenger. For the second consecutive season, Arsenal qualified for the UEFA Europa League. This was the club's first season under new manager Unai Emery.

Review

Pre-season

Arsenal began their off-season by completing some squad alterations. They started by announcing the departure of club captain Per Mertesacker, who retired to become their new academy coach. After six years at the club, Santi Cazorla's departure was also announced upon the expiry of his contract. Further, Petr Čech, Héctor Bellerín, Mohamed Elneny, Mesut Özil, Granit Xhaka and Ainsley Maitland-Niles all received new squad numbers, with the latter two also extending their contracts with the club.

After completing a clearout of backroom staff to coincide with their new club-model following the retirement of long-term manager Arsène Wenger, Spaniard Unai Emery was appointed as the club's new head coach.

The first signing of the Emery era was Swiss right-back Stephan Lichtsteiner, who joined on a free transfer from Juventus on 5 June. The club then signed German goalkeeper Bernd Leno from Bayer Leverkusen two weeks later, for a rumored fee of £19.2 million. Meanwhile, club stalwart Jack Wilshere departed following the expiry of his contract, after 17 years at the club, and Greek central defender Sokratis joined the club from Borussia Dortmund for £14.8 million on 8 July. Shortly thereafter, the club signed defensive midfielder Lucas Torreira from Sampdoria for a reported fee of £26.4 million on 10 July, and announced the transfer of Matteo Guendouzi from Lorient for a rumoured £7 million a day later.

August

On 7 August 2018, Alisher Usmanov announced that he would accept an offer from American businessman Stan Kroenke to buy his 30% stake in Arsenal for £550 million, in a deal that would allow Kroenke to take full control of the club.

Arsenal's first game was against reigning champions Manchester City on 12 August. They lost the game 2–0 after goals by Raheem Sterling and Bernardo Silva. The following game was against London rivals Chelsea on 18 August. Arsenal lost again, this time 3–2 though they had chances to get more from the game, courtesy of goals by Pedro, Álvaro Morata and Marcos Alonso while Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Alex Iwobi scored for Arsenal.

Arsenal's first win was a 3–1 victory against West Ham United on 25 August. Marko Arnautović scored first to put West Ham in front, but Nacho Monreal equalised minutes later, and an own goal by Issa Diop and a late goal by Danny Welbeck won the game for Arsenal.

September

Arsenal's first game in September and 4th game in the Premier League, was a 3–2 victory over Cardiff City on 2 September. Shkodran Mustafi scored the opening goal from a Granit Xhaka corner, but Víctor Camarasa equalised just before the break. After the restart, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang scored his first goal of the season to give Arsenal the lead. Cardiff equalised again from a Danny Ward header, but Alexandre Lacazette ensured the victory with a thumping shot to give Arsenal another three points.

After the international break, Arsenal were the visitors against Newcastle United. After a dull first half, Granit Xhaka scored a stunning free kick to give Arsenal the lead. Mesut Özil doubled the advantage on his 200th appearance for Arsenal. Late on, Ciaran Clark scored in stoppage-time to give Newcastle hope. In the end, it was not enough as Arsenal won their third consecutive game 2–1.

Arsenal started the Europa League with a 4–2 victory over Vorskla Poltava. Aubameyang opened the scoring after a counterattack. Danny Welbeck doubled the advantage, before Aubameyang and Özil both scored to lead 4–0. However, Vorskla scored two goals late in the game though Arsenal still went away with victory.

Arsenal were at the Emirates against Everton. Lacazette scored a stunning opening goal, curling a shot into the top right corner. Moments later, Aubameyang scored a second for Arsenal, tapping in from close range, though Aubameyang was in an offside position. Nevertheless, Arsenal cruised to their fifth consecutive victory in all competitions.

To start off the Carabao Cup campaign, Arsenal won 3–1 against Championship side Brentford. Arsenal scored twice through Welbeck, although Alan Judge pulled one back for Brentford. Alexandre Lacazette wrapped up the victory during stoppage-time to ensure Arsenal would progress to the next round. During the final match of September for Arsenal, they won 2–0 against Watford. Bernd Leno made his Premier League debut as a substitute after Petr Čech came off injured. Arsenal opened the scoring through a Craig Cathcart own goal following pressure by Lacazette. Özil doubled the lead when Lacazette squared the ball across for him to tap home. Arsenal came away with their seventh consecutive victory in all competitions and their fifth in the league.

October

Due to political tensions, Henrikh Mkhitaryan did not travel to Azerbaijan for Arsenal's Europa League match against Qarabağ. Arsenal nevertheless prevailed, 3–0, with Sokratis, Matteo Guendouzi and Emile Smith Rowe all scoring their debut goals.

Arsenal's strong form continued with a dominant 5–1 victory over Fulham. Although the match was tied 1–1 at half-time, Arsenal scored four second-half goals to extend their winning run to nine in all competitions. Aaron Ramsey scored just 39 seconds after being introduced as a substitute; two goals each by Lacazette and Aubameyang completed the scoresheet. A 3–1 victory against Leicester City on 22 October 2018 saw Özil become the highest scoring German player of the Premier League era, with 30 goals. They continued the winning form with a 1–0 victory against Sporting in the Europa League, with Danny Welbeck getting the deciding goal. However, Arsenal's winning streak was stopped at eleven with a 2–2 draw against Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park.

For their final match in October, Arsenal faced League One side Blackpool in the EFL Cup. The Gunners held a 2–0 lead courtesy of goals by Stephan Lichtsteiner and Emile Smith Rowe, but a second yellow card to Matteo Guendouzi allowed Blackpool to cut the lead to 2–1. Arsenal held on to advance to a quarterfinal matchup against Tottenham Hotspur.

November

Arsenal hosted Liverpool on 3 November 2018. A late strike by Alexandre Lacazette earned a point for the Gunners after James Milner gave Liverpool a second-half lead. In Europe, a 0–0 draw with Sporting secured passage into the round of 32, before a 1–1 draw with Wolverhampton Wanderers, where Henrikh Mkhitaryan's late strike ruled out Ivan Cavaleiro's opener.

After the international break, the Gunners played Bournemouth. A Jefferson Lerma own goal put them up before Joshua King equalized in first-half stoppage time. However, Aubameyang scored the winner to hand the Gunners their first victory of the month. Their final game of November was against Vorskla in the Europa League. UEFA decided before the match that it was to be moved from Poltava to Kiev due to martial law in Ukraine, and Arsenal ran out 3–0 winners, with goals from Smith Rowe, Ramsey (from the penalty spot) and Joe Willock. This game also marked the debuts of Zech Medley, Charlie Gilmour, and Bukayo Saka, all from the substitute's bench, and confirmed that Arsenal would progress as group winners.

December

Arsenal hosted the first North London derby of the year on 2 December 2018. They took an early 1–0 lead after Aubameyang converted a penalty in the 10th minute following a Jan Vertonghen handball in the box. However, Spurs scored two goals in a span of five minutes to take a 2–1 lead at halftime. Emery made two substitutions and tactical changes at halftime, and the Gunners responded brilliantly, scoring three goals en route to a 4–2 comeback win; Aubameyang netted a brace and became the first player to score ten goals in the 2018–19 Premier League season; other goals from Alexandre Lacazette, and Lucas Torreira, of which was his first goal since joining the club.

Arsenal continued their unbeaten run against rivals Manchester United at Old Trafford. In what was a dull match, Rob Holding and Aaron Ramsey both suffered injuries, the former tearing his anterior cruciate ligament, thus ruling him out for the rest of the season. The game ended in a 2–2 draw, despite Arsenal scoring two goals which were disallowed in the second half.

Arsenal bounced back from their dropped points at Old Trafford with a 1–0 victory against Huddersfield at the Emirates. Alexandre Lacazette had a goal wrongly disallowed in the first half, and Arsenal finally broke the deadlock through a stunning overhead kick from Lucas Torreira, thus sealing the three points for Arsenal in an unsatisfying performance.

Arsenal won their final Europa League Group game at home against Qarabag. Alexandre Lacazette scored the only goal of the game in a 1–0 victory.

Arsenal lost 3–2 against Southampton at St. Mary's Stadium, thus ending their 22 games unbeaten run. Danny Ings opened the scoring for Southampton, but Henrikh Mkhitaryan equalized for Arsenal with a header. Ings got his second of the game just before halftime. In the second half, Henrikh Mkhitaryan equalized once again with a deflected effort. However, Charlie Austin scored in the 85th minute, capitalizing on a Bernd Leno error to nod home and defeat the Gunners.

The next match for Arsenal was a North London Derby at the Emirates against Tottenham in the Carabao Cup. Tottenham got their revenge on Arsenal for the 4–2 defeat in the league with a 2–0 win, knocking out the Gunners from the competition.

Arsenal responded to their two consecutive losses with a 3–1 victory over Burnley. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang opened the scoring in the 14th minute after a brilliant pass by Mesut Özil. Aubameyang scored his second in the 48th minute. Despite Ashley Barnes scoring to cut the deficit for Burnley, Alex Iwobi insured that Arsenal would walk away with all 3 points in stoppage time.

Arsenal faced Brighton away from home on Boxing Day. Aubameyang scored a goal early on after some brilliant footwork from Alexandre Lacazette. Despite the early lead, Jürgen Locadia scored, capitalizing on Stephan Lichtsteiner's error, forcing a draw at Falmer Stadium.

Arsenal's last game of 2018 was against title contenders Liverpool F.C. at Anfield. Arsenal got off to the perfect start with an 11th-minute goal from Ainsley Maitland-Niles. However, Liverpool responded brilliantly, with Roberto Firmino scoring twice within the space of a minute right after Arsenal's opener. Sadio Mané made matters worse with a goal in the 32nd minute. Mohammed Salah scored a penalty just before halftime, and Firmino got his hat trick with another penalty in the 55th minute, as Arsenal fell to a 5–1 defeat.

January

Arsenal started 2019 with a 4–1 victory against relegation contenders Fulham. Granit Xhaka, Alexandre Lacazette, Aaron Ramsey, and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang scored for the Gunners; Aboubakar Kamara scored for the visitors.

Arsenal kicked off their FA Cup campaign away to Blackpool. Joe Willock scored a brace and Alex Iwobi added another en route to a 3–0 victory.

Arsenal lost again away in the league, Declan Rice's goal was enough for West Ham to snatch the 3 points at London Stadium. However, the Gunners responded in their next match, a 2–0 victory against rivals Chelsea at Emirates Stadium courtesy of Alexandre Lacazette and Laurent Koscielny goals took Arsenal within 3 points of the opponent. Despite the victory, the Gunners took a massive blow, as Hector Bellerín tore his anterior cruciate ligament, ruling him out for the rest of the season.

Next up was an FA Cup match against in-form rivals Manchester United. Alexis Sánchez scored for United against his former side. It was quickly made 2–0 in favor of the away team through Jesse Lingard. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang halved the deficit just before the break, however Anthony Martial wrapped up the victory for United as Gunners were eliminated, losing 3–1.

Arsenal's final game in January came at home to Cardiff City, who were playing their first match since the death of Emiliano Sala. Aubameyang scored the first goal of the game, slotting his penalty home. Lacazette doubled the advantage after making a brilliant run into the box. Nathaniel Mendez-Laing scored a stoppage-time consolation for Cardiff. The victory sent Arsenal up to 4th place over Chelsea.

February

Arsenal's first match of February was a tough one, away to title contenders and defending champions Manchester City. Sergio Agüero scored for City in the 1st minute of the match. However, the Gunners responded, Laurent Koscielny nodded home from close range in the 10th minute. Agüero scored his second just before the break, and City extended their lead to 3–1 with a controversial goal from Agüero, thus sealing his hat trick.

Arsenal faced relegation-threatened Huddersfield away from home. Alex Iwobi scored first, before Lacazette doubled the advantage. Huddersfield scored a last-minute consolation, Sead Kolašinac scoring an own goal.

After more than two months away from Europe, the Gunners were back in Europa League action via a trip to Barysaw to face Belarusian minnows BATE Borisov. However, a lacklustre display ensued, and Stanislaw Drahuns header on the stroke of half time, coupled with Alexandre Lacazette's late red card, saw BATE record a famous 1–0 win and an advantage to take to North London.

However, the second leg had a fairly varying script to the first game, with defensive errors from BATE ultimately gifting Arsenal a 3–0 win, after an early own goal from Zakhar Volkov, coupled with free headers from Shkodran Mustafi and Sokratis Papastathopolous guided Arsenal into the last-16.

The Gunners built on the victory with a routine 2–0 home win over Southampton, earned after early goals from Lacazette and Henrikh Mkhitaryan. The Arsenal faithful then witnessed yet another Emirates Stadium win, with midfield masterclasses from Mkhitaryan and returning Mesut Özil setting up a 5–1 dismantling of Bournemouth. Both Özil and Mkhitaryan scored, with the latter setting up goals from Laurent Koscielny and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, whilst Lacazette was on the scoresheet for the third successive league match, bending home a wonderful free-kick with 12 minutes to play.

March

A testing March fixture schedule opened with a daunting trip to top-four rivals Tottenham Hotspur. Delays in the construction of Spurs new stadium meant the match was to be staged at Wembley, and the Gunners made a flying start, with Aaron Ramsey scoring for the fourth time at the national ground to put the visitors ahead on 16 minutes. A staggering double-save from Bernd Leno retained Arsenal's clean sheet before Tottenham were awarded a penalty mired in offside controversy in the 74th minute. Harry Kane buried the penalty to level the scores before Aubameyang was clipped in the penalty area in stoppage time. However, the Gabonese was denied from the spot, and Lucas Torreira was subsequently sent off late on as the Gunners had to settle for a frustrating 1–1 draw.

Things worsened in midweek as, despite going ahead after three minutes from Alex Iwobi, the Gunners fell to another road defeat as Stade Rennais earned a convincing 3–1 win in the Europa League round of 16 first leg. The turning point was undoubtedly Papastathopoulos's red card shortly before the break, with Rennes levelling a minute later through Benjamin Bourigeaud. In the second period, the Gunners completely fell apart, with Nacho Monreal's own goal and Ismaila Sarr's late header inflicting a dangerous wound upon the Gunners.

Arsenal then had a stern test forthcoming. Manchester United were the visitors to Emirates Stadium, and a tense encounter ensued. United were still unbeaten domestically under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, but that was about to change. Despite the Red Devils dominating in chances, a resolute Arsenal backline, coupled with defensive errors at the other end, saw Granit Xhaka's long-range attempt misjudged by goalkeeper David de Gea to but Arsenal in front, before a penalty from Aubameyang saw the Gabonese make amends for his miss at Spurs to seal a vital 2–0 win.

The Gunners next fixture was at home against Rennes in the second leg of their round-of-16 tie. Trailing 3–1 from the first leg, Arsenal made the perfect start, with Aubameyang poking home Ramsey's cross after just five minutes to put them ahead. He then delivered a superb cross for Ainsley Maitland-Niles-Niles to make it 2–0 and put Arsenal ahead on away goals inside fifteen minutes. Rennes threatened sporadically, but Aubameyang added his second late on to wrap up a 3–0 triumph and 4–3 aggregate win.

April

April began with Arsenal seeking to rise to third after Tottenham's defeat at Liverpool closed the top-four gap to just a single point. The Gunners duly gathered the necessary three points after goals in either half from Aaron Ramsey and Alexandre Lacazette earned the Gunners a 2–0 victory over Newcastle United. It was also their 10th successive league win at the Emirates Stadium, the first time they had achieved such a run since its opening in 2006.

However, the Gunners' were hauled back out of the top four next time out after Phil Jagielka's 10th-minute goal earned Everton a 1–0 win over the listless Gunners.

Arsenal needed to bounce back, and had no better opportunity to do so than in the first-leg of their Europa League quarter-final tie, against one of the favourites, Italian giants SSC Napoli. And the Gunners responded, claiming an impressive 2–0 win and duly seize control of the tie. Aaron Ramsey had put the Gunners ahead early, before Lucas Torreira's effort on 25 minutes deflected in off Kalidou Koulibaly to settle the match.

Despite lying fifth in the table and on course for the Europa League semi-finals, Arsenal's away form had been sketchy all season long, and it was perhaps rather disappointing that the Gunners had to wait nine months prior to their first clean sheet on the road in the Premier League in a rather bizarre 1–0 win at Watford. The majority of the games action occurred inside the first eleven minutes, with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang opening the scoring on ten minutes with one of the strangest goals of the season, with the lethal marksman managing to nip ahead of goalkeeper Ben Foster, and the Watford man hacked his clearance straight at Aubameyang as the ball rolled into the net. A minute later, Troy Deeney received his marching orders after elbowing Lucas Torreira in midfield. The ten-man Hornets did try hard, but ultimately fell to their first defeat of the month.

Arsenal then earned a second successive 1–0 win away from home as Alexandre Lacazette's stunning 36th-minute free-kick, coupled with a resolute defensive performance from the Gunners, saw them seal a vital win in Naples against Napoli, thus recording a 3–0 aggregate victory and subsequently qualifying them for the semi-finals for the second successive season. They were then drawn against Spanish outfit Valencia CF, who had ruthlessly dispatched fellow Spaniards Villarreal 5–1 on aggregate in the last eight.

Everything was going smoothly in North London prior to the Gunners home match against safety-hunting Crystal Palace. However, a dull first-half display saw Unai Emerys side head into the break a goal behind after Christian Bentekes early header, his first goal all year long. However, Arsenal made a swift start to the second period, with Mesut Özil's ingenious chip on 47 minutes making it 1–1. Nonetheless, quickfire goals after the hour from Wilfried Zaha and James McArthur further extended Palaces lead to 3–1, and though Aubameyang pulled a goal back, the Gunners fell to a morale-shattering 3–2 defeat in their first league defeat at home since August.

They failed to respond in their next encounter, a trip to Wolverhampton Wanderers, and a first half blitz from the high-flying Pack seeing them take a 3–0 advantage into the break after goals from Ruben Neves, Conor Coady and Diogo Jota. Sokratis Papastathopolous then scored his first league goal from the Gunners with ten minutes to play, but it wasn't enough as Wolves sealed a superb 3–1 win. Another capitulation ensued away to Leicester City next time out. At half-time, the game was locked at 0–0 but the Gunners were indeed a man down after a disputable Ainsley Maitland-Niles red card. With an hour played, Youri Tielemans headed the Foxes in front, before a late brace from the Gunners' arch-nemesis Jamie Vardy wrapped up a 3–0 triumph for Brendan Rodgers Leicester and leave Arsenal's top-four hopes in serious jeopardy.

May

However, Europe once again proved the saviour of Arsenal, as a brace from Alexandre Lacazette laid the scaffolds for an impressive 3–1 comeback victory over Valencia in the first leg of the Europa League semi-final at the Emirates Stadium. However, it was the visitors who took the lead in North London, with Mouctar Diakhaby finishing off a clever Valencia set-piece move with a firm header, before Alexandre Lacazette slammed home Aubameyangs square ball to level it. Lacazette nodded home Granit Xhaka's cross before the break to make it 2–1 before Aubameyang wrapped up the win in the final minute of normal time, volleying home Sead Kolasinac's cross to ensure Arsenal took a healthy advantage to the second leg in Spain.

The Gunners had one foot in the Europa League final, but the top-four looked unlikely. The Gunners had to beat Brighton at home to attain any realistic chance of regaining their top-four status, and made the perfect start after Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang stroked home from the spot on nine minutes to put Arsenal in front. However, on the hour mark, Brighton were gifted a route back into the game after Solly March was hauled down from Granit Xhaka. Glenn Murray duly netted his 200th league career goal as the Seagulls earned a creditable 1–1 draw, leaving the Gunners needing to have three points and eight goal difference swing in their favour on the final day.

With the top four realistically out of reach, the Gunners travelled to Spain to contest what was arguably their most vital match of the season so far away to Valencia in the Europa League semi-final second leg. However, Valencia-in need of a 2–0 win to progress-made a fast start, taking the lead on 11 minutes after Kevin Gameiro turned home Rodrigo's cross, but a stunning volley from Aubameyang saw the two sides head into the break locked at 1–1, with Arsenal leading 4–2 on aggregate. Five minutes into the second period, Arsenal practically sealed progression to the final in Baku after Alexandre Lacazette rifled home Lucas Torreira's pass, before Valencia made it 2–2 after Gameiro added his second, bundling over the line. However, the hosts found them behind again after Aubameyang poked home Maitland-Niles' low cross, before the Gunners' top scorer completed his first-ever Arsenal hat-trick, powering Henrikh Mkhitaryans through-ball, as Arsenal secured a famous 4–2 win, subsequently swaggering into the UEFA Europa League final for the first time since its 2009 rebrand, hammering Valencia 7–3 on aggregate. Later in the day, it was confirmed that Chelsea had beaten Eintracht Frankfurt on penalties after a 2–2 aggregate draw, meaning that all four finalists in Europe that season were from England, the first time this had happened from any country in history.

Qualified for the Europa League final and out of the top-four race, Arsenal named a weakened line-up in their fixture at Burnley on the final day of the season. After a goalless first 45', a loose ball from Ben Mee sent Aubameyang through on goal in the 52nd minute. He duly put Arsenal ahead, before volleying home Alex Iwobi's cross eleven minutes later to make it 2–0. Ashley Barnes then pulled a goal back for the home side before substitute-18-year-old Eddie Nketiah-netted his first Premier League goal for Arsenal, as the Gunners sealed a 3–1 win, thus finishing fifth, just one point behind Tottenham Hotspur.

After the league disappointment, Arsenal had two weeks to prepare for what was dubbed as their most important game of the decade, the UEFA Europa League final against Chelsea in the Baku Olympic Stadium, Azerbaijan. However, the build-up was mired in controversy, with the undersized Baku airports permitting just 4000 fans of each London side, not to mention the 6628 mile round-trip, but the worst was in regard to Henrikh Mkhitaryans. One of the Gunners' better players in 2019, the fractioned relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan ensued in warnings from the Azerbaijani sports government, advising the midfielder not to travel. Mkhitaryan decided not to, with the Gunners heading to East Europe without him.

On final night, Arsenal and Chelsea walked out to an eerie atmosphere in Baku. Empty seats ringed the ground, and a listless first period ended goalless, mirroring the stark atmosphere. However, the final burst into life in the second. Just four minutes into the second period, Olivier Giroud nodded home Emerson Palmieri's cross against his former club to make it 1–0 Chelsea, before Pedro Rodriguez swept home on the hour to make it 2–0. Eden Hazard then stroked home from the spot to make it 3–0, with Arsenal appearing shell-shocked to their capitulation early in the second half. However, a stunning half-volley from Alex Iwobi with 21 minutes to go restored a glimmer of home to the Arsenal camp, but Eden Hazard soon notched his second as Chelsea sealed a 4–1 victory, leaving Arsenal empty-handed after a strenuous end to the season. It was a reasonable campaign, but the manner of their defeat to Chelsea and in the top-four race was arguably the foundation for fans irk.

Players

Further information: Arsenal F.C. § Players

N	Pos.	Nat.	Name	Age	EU	Since	App	Goals	Ends	Transfer fee	Notes
1	GK		Petr Čech	42	EU	2015	139	0	2019	£10.0M	Vice-captain
2	DF		Héctor Bellerín	29	EU	2013	181	7	2023	Youth system
4	MF		Mohamed Elneny	32	Non-EU	2016 (Winter)	89	2	2022	£7.4M
5	DF		Sokratis Papastathopoulos	36	EU	2018	40	3	2021	£14.8M
6	DF		Laurent Koscielny	39	EU	2010	353	27	2020	£8.5M	Captain
7	MF		Henrikh Mkhitaryan	35	Non-EU	2018 (Winter)	56	9	2021	Swap deal
8	MF		Aaron Ramsey	33	EU	2008	369	64	2019	£4.8M	Vice-captain
9	FW		Alexandre Lacazette	33	EU	2017	88	36	2022	£46.5M
10	MF		Mesut Özil	36	EU	2013	231	43	2021	£42.5M	Vice-captain
11	MF		Lucas Torreira	28	EU	2018	50	2	2023	£26.4M
12	DF		Stephan Lichtsteiner	40	EU	2018	23	1	2019	Free
13	GK		David Ospina	36	Non-EU	2014	70	0	2020	£3.2M	On loan at Napoli
14	FW		Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang	35	EU	2018 (Winter)	65	41	2021	£56.0M	Current record signing
15	MF		Ainsley Maitland-Niles	27	EU	2014	68	2	2023	Youth system
16	DF		Rob Holding	29	EU	2016	60	1	2023	£2.0M
17	FW		Alex Iwobi	28	EU	2015	149	15	2022	Youth system
18	DF		Nacho Monreal	38	EU	2013 (Winter)	248	10	2019	£8.5M
19	GK		Bernd Leno	32	EU	2018	36	0	2023	£19.2M
20	DF		Shkodran Mustafi	32	EU	2016	115	8	2021	£35.0M
21	DF		Calum Chambers	29	EU	2014	83	3	2022	£16.0M	On loan at Fulham
22	MF		Denis Suárez	30	EU	2019 (Winter)	6	0	2019	—	On loan from Barcelona
23	FW		Danny Welbeck	33	EU	2014	126	32	2019	£16.0M
25	DF		Carl Jenkinson	32	EU	2011	69	1	2020	£1.0M
26	GK		Emiliano Martínez	32	Non-EU	2010	14	0	2022	Youth system	On loan at Reading
27	DF		Konstantinos Mavropanos	26	EU	2018 (Winter)	7	0	2023	£1.8M
29	MF		Matteo Guendouzi	25	EU	2018	48	1	2023	£7.0M
31	DF		Sead Kolašinac	31	EU	2017	72	5	2022	Free
34	MF		Granit Xhaka	32	EU	2016	134	11	2023	£30.0M	Vice-captain
—	FW		Takuma Asano	30	Non-EU	2016	0	0	2020	£0.8M	On loan at Hannover 96

• Last updated: 29 May 2019
• Source: Arsenal FC and FootballDatabase (for EU passport, country as international player, contract ending and transfer fee)
• Ordered by squad number.

Transfers

Transfers in

Date from	Position	Name	From	Fee	Team	Ref.
23 May 2018	GK	Karl Jakob Hein	Nõmme United	Free transfer	Academy
1 July 2018	DF	Stephan Lichtsteiner	Juventus	Free transfer	First team
	GK	Bernd Leno	Bayer Leverkusen	£22,500,000
2 July 2018	DF	Sokratis Papastathopoulos	Borussia Dortmund	£14,400,000
10 July 2018	MF	Lucas Torreira	Sampdoria	£27,000,000
11 July 2018	FW	Sam Greenwood	Sunderland	Training compensation	Academy
	MF	Matteo Guendouzi	Lorient	£8,000,000	First team
19 July 2018	DF	Joel López	Barcelona	Training compensation	Academy
27 July 2018	MF	Marcelo Flores	Ipswich Town	Training compensation

Loans in

Date from	Position	Name	From	End date	Team	Ref.
31 January 2019	MF	Denis Suárez	Barcelona	End of season	First team
7 February 2019	GK	James Hillson	Reading	End of season	Academy

Transfers out

Date from	Position	Name	To	Fee	Team	Ref.
1 July 2018
	MF	Santi Cazorla	Villarreal	Released	First team
	DF	Per Mertesacker	Retired
	MF	Jack Wilshere	West Ham United	Released
	DF	Marc Bola	Blackpool	Released	Academy
	GK	Alex Crean	Released
	MF	Josh Dasilva	Brentford	Released
	MF	Vlad Dragomir	Perugia	Released
	MF	Aaron Eyoma	Derby County	Released
	FW	Yassin Fortune	FC Sion	Released
	GK	Ryan Huddart	Boreham Wood	Released
	DF	Chiori Johnson	Bolton Wanderers	Released
	GK	Hugo Keto	Brighton & Hove Albion	Released
	DF	Tafari Moore	Plymouth Argyle	Released
	MF	Josh Benson	Burnley	Released
	MF	Jay Beckford	Lillehammer	Released
12 July 2018	FW	David Agbontohoma	Southampton	Training compensation
13 July 2018	FW	Armstrong Okoflex	Celtic	Training compensation
26 July 2018	FW	Jeff Reine-Adélaïde	Angers	~£1,440,000	First team
3 August 2018	FW	Chuba Akpom	PAOK	Undisclosed
	GK	João Virgínia	Everton	Undisclosed	Academy
9 August 2018	FW	Lucas Pérez	West Ham United	Undisclosed	First team
17 August 2018	FW	Joel Campbell	Frosinone	Undisclosed
17 August 2018	FW	Stephy Mavididi	Juventus	Undisclosed	Academy
23 January 2019	GK	Daniel Barden	Norwich City	Undisclosed	Academy
11 March 2019	MF	Gedion Zelalem	Sporting KC	Free Transfer	Academy
20 March 2019	MF	Josh Martin	Norwich City	Undisclosed	Academy

Loans out

Start date	Position	Name	To	End date	Team	Ref.
1 July 2018	FW	Takuma Asano	Hannover 96	End of season	First team
19 July 2018	MF	Kelechi Nwakali	Porto		Academy
30 July 2018	GK	Matt Macey	Plymouth Argyle
7 August 2018	DF	Calum Chambers	Fulham		First team
16 August 2018	MF	Krystian Bielik	Charlton Athletic		Academy
17 August 2018	GK	David Ospina	Napoli		First team
31 August 2018	MF	Reiss Nelson	Hoffenheim		First team
23 January 2019	GK	Emiliano Martínez	Reading		First team
31 January 2019	MF	Emile Smith Rowe	RB Leipzig		First team

Club

Kits

Supplier: Puma / Sponsor: Fly Emirates

Home

Home alt.1

Home alt.2

Home alt.3

Away

Away alt.1

Third

Squad statistics

Appearances and goals

As of 29 May 2019

No.	Pos.	Nat.	Name	Premier League		FA Cup		EFL Cup		Europa League		Total
				Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
1	GK	CZE	Petr Čech	7	0	2	0	2	0	11	0	22	0
2	DF	ESP	Héctor Bellerín	18(1)	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	18(1)	0
4	MF	EGY	Mohamed Elneny	5(3)	0	1	0	1	0	5(2)	0	12(5)	0
5	DF	GRE	Sokratis Papastathopoulos	25	1	2	0	1	0	11(1)	2	39(1)	3
6	DF	FRA	Laurent Koscielny	13(4)	3	1	0	0(1)	0	10	0	24(5)	3
7	MF	ARM	Henrikh Mkhitaryan	19(6)	6	0	0	3	0	6(5)	0	28(11)	6
8	MF	WAL	Aaron Ramsey	13(14)	4	2	0	2(1)	0	6(1)	2	23(16)	6
9	FW	FRA	Alexandre Lacazette	27(8)	13	1(1)	0	0(2)	1	8(2)	5	36(13)	19
10	MF	GER	Mesut Özil	20(4)	5	0(1)	0	0	0	8(2)	1	28(7)	6
11	MF	URU	Lucas Torreira	24(10)	2	1	0	1(2)	0	6(6)	0	32(18)	2
12	DF	SUI	Stephan Lichtsteiner	10(4)	0	1	0	2	1	6	0	19(4)	1
14	FW	GAB	Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang	30(6)	22	1	1	1(1)	0	10(2)	8	42(9)	31
15	MF	ENG	Ainsley Maitland-Niles	11(5)	1	2	0	2	0	9(1)	1	24(6)	2
16	DF	ENG	Rob Holding	9(1)	0	0	0	1	0	5	0	15(1)	0
17	FW	NGA	Alex Iwobi	22(13)	3	2	1	2(1)	0	6(5)	2	32(19)	6
18	DF	ESP	Nacho Monreal	21(1)	1	0	0	2	0	10(2)	0	33(3)	1
19	GK	GER	Bernd Leno	31(1)	0	0	0	1	0	3	0	35(1)	0
20	DF	GER	Shkodran Mustafi	31	2	0(1)	0	2	0	5(1)	1	38(2)	3
22	MF	SPA	Denis Suárez	0(4)	0	0	0	0	0	0(2)	0	0(6)	0
23	FW	ENG	Danny Welbeck	1(7)	1	0	0	2	2	4	2	7(7)	5
25	DF	ENG	Carl Jenkinson	2(1)	0	1	0	1	0	3	0	7(1)	0
27	DF	GRE	Konstantinos Mavropanos	3(1)	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	3(1)	0
29	MF	FRA	Matteo Guendouzi	23(10)	0	0(1)	0	3	0	7(4)	1	33(15)	1
31	DF	BIH	Sead Kolašinac	22(2)	0	2	0	0	0	8(2)	0	32(4)	0
34	MF	SUI	Granit Xhaka	29	4	1	0	1	0	9	0	40	4
43	MF	SCO	Charlie Gilmour	0	0	0	0	0	0	0(2)	0	0(2)	0
47	DF	ENG	Zech Medley	0	0	0(1)	0	0	0	0(2)	0	0(3)	0
49	FW	ENG	Eddie Nketiah	0(5)	1	1	0	0(1)	0	2	0	3(6)	1
53	DF	ESP	Julio Pleguezuelo	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	1	0
59	MF	ENG	Joe Willock	1(1)	0	1	2	0	0	2(1)	1	4(2)	3
87	FW	ENG	Bukayo Saka	0(1)	0	0(1)	0	0	0	1(1)	0	1(3)	0
Players out on loan for rest of the season
13	GK	COL	David Ospina	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
21	DF	ENG	Calum Chambers	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
26	GK	ARG	Emiliano Martinez	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	1	0
55	MF	ENG	Emile Smith Rowe	0	0	0	0	2	1	3(1)	2	5(1)	3
N/A	FW	JPN	Takuma Asano	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Goalscorers

As of 29 May 2019

Rank	Position	Name	Premier League	FA Cup	EFL Cup	Europa League	Total
1	FW	Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang	22	1	0	8	31
2	FW	Alexandre Lacazette	13	0	1	5	19
3	FW	Alex Iwobi	3	1	0	2	6
	MF	Henrikh Mkhitaryan	6	0	0	0	6
	MF	Mesut Özil	5	0	0	1	6
	MF	Aaron Ramsey	4	0	0	2	6
7	FW	Danny Welbeck	1	0	2	2	5
8	MF	Granit Xhaka	4	0	0	0	4
9	DF	Laurent Koscielny	3	0	0	0	3
	DF	Shkodran Mustafi	2	0	0	1	3
	DF	Sokratis Papastathopoulos	1	0	0	2	3
	MF	Emile Smith Rowe	0	0	1	2	3
	MF	Joe Willock	0	2	0	1	3
14	MF	Ainsley Maitland-Niles	1	0	0	1	2
	MF	Lucas Torreira	2	0	0	0	2
16	MF	Matteo Guendouzi	0	0	0	1	1
	DF	Stephan Lichtsteiner	0	0	1	0	1
	DF	Nacho Monreal	1	0	0	0	1
	FW	Eddie Nketiah	1	0	0	0	1
Own goals			4	0	0	2	6
Total			73	4	5	30	112

Disciplinary record

As of 29 May 2019

Rank	Position	Name	Premier League		FA Cup		EFL Cup		Europa League		Total
1	DF	Sokratis Papastathopoulos	12	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	12	1
2	MF	Matteo Guendouzi	8	0	1	0	1	1	1	0	11	1
3	MF	Lucas Torreira	7	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	7	1
4	FW	Alexandre Lacazette	2	0	0	0	0	0	2	1	3	1
5	MF	Ainsley Maitland-Niles	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	1
6	MF	Granit Xhaka	10	0	0	0	1	0	2	0	13	0
7	DF	Shkodran Mustafi	9	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	9	0
8	DF	Sead Kolašinac	5	0	2	0	0	0	1	0	8	0
9	DF	Stephan Lichtsteiner	3	0	0	0	1	0	1	0	5	0
	DF	Nacho Monreal	5	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	5	0
11	DF	Rob Holding	1	0	0	0	0	0	3	0	4	0
12	DF	Héctor Bellerín	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	3	0
	MF	Henrikh Mkhitaryan	1	0	0	0	0	0	2	0	3	0
	MF	Mesut Özil	2	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	3	0
15	DF	Laurent Koscielny	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	2	0
16	FW	Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	1	0
	GK	Petr Čech	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	1	0
	DF	Carl Jenkinson	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	1	0
	DF	Konstantinos Mavropanos	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
	FW	Danny Welbeck	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	1	0
Total			71	2	4	0	5	1	15	2	95	5

Clean sheets

As of 29 May 2019

Rank	Name	Premier League	FA Cup	EFL Cup	Europa League	Total
1	Petr Čech	1	1	0	6	8
	Bernd Leno	6	0	0	2	8
3	Emiliano Martínez	0	0	0	1	1
Shared		1	0	0	0	1
Total		8	1	0	9	18

Pre-season and friendlies

  Win   Draw   Loss

Friendlies

Boreham Wood v Arsenal

14 July 2018 (2018-07-14)	Boreham Wood	0–8	Arsenal	Borehamwood, Hertfordshire, England
15:00 BST		Report	Aubameyang 7', 9', 17' (pen.) Nelson 35' Lacazette 40' Nketiah 53' Reine-Adélaïde 71' Mkhitaryan 80'	Stadium: Meadow Park

Arsenal v Lazio

4 August 2018 (2018-08-04)	Arsenal	2–0	Lazio	Stockholm, Sweden
20:00 CEST 19:00 BST	Nelson 18' Aubameyang 64' Holding  77'	Report		Stadium: Friends Arena Referee: Martin Strömbergsson (Sweden)

Al Nasr v Arsenal

26 March 2019 (2019-03-26)	Al Nasr	2–3	Arsenal	Dubai, United Arab Emirates
13:30 GMT	Fernández 14' Jalal 90' (pen.)	Report	Jenkinson 42' Lacazette 51' John-Jules 72'	Stadium: Al Maktoum Stadium

International Champions Cup

Main article: 2018 International Champions Cup

Atlético Madrid v Arsenal

26 July 2018 (2018-07-26) 2018 ICC (Asia)	Atlético Madrid	1–1 (3–1 p)	Arsenal	Kallang, Singapore
19:30 SST 12:30 BST	Vietto 41'	Report	Smith Rowe 47' Chambers  80'	Stadium: National Stadium Attendance: 23,095 Referee: Ahmad A'Qashah (Singapore)
	Penalties
	Correa Rodri Moreno Mollejo Adán		Mkhitaryan Willock Maitland-Niles Nketiah

Arsenal v Paris Saint-Germain

28 July 2018 (2018-07-28) 2018 ICC (Asia)	Arsenal	5–1	Paris Saint-Germain	Kallang, Singapore
19:30 SST 12:30 BST	Özil 13' Lacazette 67', 71' Holding 87' Nketiah 90+4'	Report	Diarra  51' Nkunku 60' (pen.)	Stadium: National Stadium Attendance: 50,308 Referee: Nathan Rong De Chan (Singapore)

Arsenal v Chelsea

1 August 2018 (2018-08-01) 2018 ICC (Europe)	Arsenal	1–1 (6–5 p)	Chelsea	Dublin, Ireland
21:05 CEST 20:05 BST	Lacazette 90+3'	Report	Rüdiger 5'	Stadium: Aviva Stadium Attendance: 46,002 Referee: Paul McLaughlin (Republic of Ireland)
	Penalties
	Lacazette Nelson Guendouzi Maitland-Niles Özil Iwobi		Drinkwater Abraham Moses Emerson Piazon Loftus-Cheek

Competitions

  Win   Draw   Loss

Overview

Competition	Record
	P	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Win %
Premier League	38	21	7	10	73	51	+22	055.26
FA Cup	2	1	0	1	4	3	+1	050.00
EFL Cup	3	2	0	1	5	4	+1	066.67
Europa League	15	11	1	3	30	13	+17	073.33
Total	58	35	8	15	112	71	+41	060.34

Updated to match played 29 May 2019
Source: Competitions

Premier League

Main article: 2018–19 Premier League

League table

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification or relegation
3	Chelsea	38	21	9	8	63	39	+24	72	Qualification for the Champions League group stage
4	Tottenham Hotspur	38	23	2	13	67	39	+28	71
5	Arsenal	38	21	7	10	73	51	+22	70	Qualification for the Europa League group stage
6	Manchester United	38	19	9	10	65	54	+11	66
7	Wolverhampton Wanderers	38	16	9	13	47	46	+1	57	Qualification for the Europa League second qualifying round

Source: Premier League
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored; 4) Play-offs (only if needed to decide champion, teams for relegation or teams for UEFA competitions).
Notes:

Results summary

Overall								Home						Away
Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD
38	21	7	10	73	51	+22	70	14	3	2	42	16	+26	7	4	8	31	35	−4

Last updated: 12 May 2019.
Source: Premier League

Result by matchday

Matchday	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31	32	33	34	35	36	37	38
Ground	H	A	H	A	A	H	H	A	H	A	H	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	A	H	A	H	H	A	A	H	H	A	H	H	A	A	H	A	A	H	A
Result	L	L	W	W	W	W	W	W	W	D	D	D	W	W	D	W	L	W	D	L	W	L	W	W	L	W	W	W	D	W	W	L	W	L	L	L	D	W
Position	15	17	9	9	7	6	5	4	4	4	5	5	5	4	5	5	5	5	5	5	5	5	5	4	6	5	4	4	5	4	3	4	4	5	5	5	5	5

Updated to match(es) played on 12 May 2019. Source: Statto.com
A = Away; H = Home; W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss

Matches

On 14 June 2018, the Premier League fixtures for the forthcoming season were announced.

Arsenal v Manchester City

12 August 2018 (2018-08-12) 1	Arsenal	0–2	Manchester City	Holloway
16:00 BST	Papastathopoulos  27' Xhaka  52'	Report	Sterling  4', 14' B. Silva 64' De Bruyne  73'	Stadium: Emirates Stadium Attendance: 59,934 Referee: Michael Oliver

Chelsea v Arsenal

18 August 2018 (2018-08-18) 2	Chelsea	3–2	Arsenal	Chelsea
17:30 BST	Pedro 8' Morata 20' Alonso 81'	Report	Xhaka  27' Mkhitaryan 37' Iwobi 41' Mustafi  77'	Stadium: Stamford Bridge Attendance: 40,491 Referee: Martin Atkinson

Arsenal v West Ham United

25 August 2018 (2018-08-25) 3	Arsenal	3–1	West Ham United	Holloway
15:00 BST	Monreal 30' Diop 70' (o.g.) Papastathopoulos  90' Welbeck 90+2'	Report	Arnautović 25' Diop  41' Fredericks  80' Wilshere  88'	Stadium: Emirates Stadium Attendance: 59,830 Referee: Graham Scott

Cardiff City v Arsenal

2 September 2018 (2018-09-02) 4	Cardiff City	2–3	Arsenal	Cardiff, Wales
13:30 BST	Camarasa 45+2' Ward 70' Hoilett  71' Camarasa  77' Arter  90+3'	Report	Mustafi 11' Monreal  25' Bellerín  51' Guendouzi  58' Aubameyang 62' Xhaka  66' Lacazette 81'	Stadium: Cardiff City Stadium Attendance: 32,316 Referee: Anthony Taylor

Newcastle United v Arsenal

15 September 2018 (2018-09-15) 5	Newcastle United	1–2	Arsenal	Newcastle upon Tyne
15:00 BST	Clark 90+1'	Report	Xhaka 49' Özil 58'	Stadium: St James' Park Attendance: 52,165 Referee: Lee Probert

Arsenal v Everton

23 September 2018 (2018-09-23) 6	Arsenal	2–0	Everton	Holloway
16:00 BST	Torreira  15' Papastathopoulos  30' Lacazette 56' Aubameyang 59'	Report	Digne  27'	Stadium: Emirates Stadium Attendance: 59,964 Referee: Jonathan Moss

Arsenal v Watford

29 September 2018 (2018-09-29) 7	Arsenal	2–0	Watford	Holloway
15:00 BST	Torreira  45' Mustafi  62' Cathcart 81' (o.g.) Özil 83'	Report	Deeney  31' Doucouré  79'	Stadium: Emirates Stadium Attendance: 60,019 Referee: Anthony Taylor

Fulham v Arsenal

7 October 2018 (2018-10-07) 8	Fulham	1–5	Arsenal	Fulham
12:00 BST	Schürrle 44',  70' Vietto  57'	Report	Lacazette 29', 49' Ramsey 67' Aubameyang 79', 90+1'	Stadium: Craven Cottage Attendance: 25,401 Referee: Paul Tierney

Arsenal v Leicester City

22 October 2018 (2018-10-22) 9	Arsenal	3–1	Leicester City	Holloway
20:00 BST	Holding  17' Xhaka  35' Özil 45' Aubameyang 63', 66'	Report	Bellerín 31' (o.g.) Albrighton  64' Pereira  65'	Stadium: Emirates Stadium Attendance: 59,886 Referee: Chris Kavanagh

Crystal Palace v Arsenal

28 October 2018 (2018-10-28) 10	Crystal Palace	2–2	Arsenal	Selhurst
13:30 GMT	J. Ayew  8' Milivojević 45+1' (pen.), 83' (pen.)	Report	Xhaka 51' Aubameyang 56' Lichsteiner  79' Guendouzi  90+4'	Stadium: Selhurst Park Attendance: 25,718 Referee: Martin Atkinson

Arsenal v Liverpool

3 November 2018 (2018-11-03) 11	Arsenal	1–1	Liverpool	Holloway
17:30 GMT	Lacazette 82',  83'	Report	Fabinho  52' Milner 61'	Stadium: Emirates Stadium Attendance: 59,993 Referee: Andre Marriner

Arsenal v Wolverhampton Wanderers

11 November 2018 (2018-11-11) 12	Arsenal	1–1	Wolverhampton Wanderers	Holloway
16:30 GMT	Özil  69' Bellerín  78' Mkhitaryan 86'	Report	Cavaleiro 13' Doherty  71' Costa  74'	Stadium: Emirates Stadium Attendance: 60,030 Referee: Stuart Attwell

Bournemouth v Arsenal

25 November 2018 (2018-11-25) 13	Bournemouth	1–2	Arsenal	Bournemouth
13:30 GMT	King 45+1' Aké  52' Lerma  66'	Report	Papastathopoulos  25' Lerma 30' (o.g.) Aubameyang 67'	Stadium: Vitality Stadium Attendance: 10,792 Referee: Craig Pawson

Arsenal v Tottenham Hotspur

2 December 2018 (2018-12-02) 14	Arsenal	4–2	Tottenham Hotspur	Holloway
14:05 GMT	Aubameyang 10' (pen.), 56' Mustafi  37' Xhaka  49' Lacazette 74' Torreira 77',  78'	Report	Vertonghen  9'  85' Dier 30',  32' Kane 34' (pen.) Alli  65' Aurier  90'	Stadium: Emirates Stadium Attendance: 59,973 Referee: Mike Dean

Manchester United v Arsenal

5 December 2018 (2018-12-05) 15	Manchester United	2–2	Arsenal	Manchester
20:00 GMT	Martial 30' Rojo  38' Lingard  40', 69' Matić  42'	Report	Mustafi 26',  37' Bellerín  41' Rojo 67' (o.g.) Torreira  86'	Stadium: Old Trafford Attendance: 74,507 Referee: Andre Marriner

Arsenal v Huddersfield Town

8 December 2018 (2018-12-08) 16	Arsenal	1–0	Huddersfield Town	Holloway
15:00 GMT	Xhaka  24' Lichtsteiner  38' Papastathopoulos  40' Mustafi  45+2' Guendouzi  80' Torreira 83'	Report	Pritchard  35' Williams  38' Smith  39' Bacuna  85'	Stadium: Emirates Stadium Attendance: 59,893 Referee: Paul Tierney

Southampton v Arsenal

16 December 2018 (2018-12-16) 17	Southampton	3–2	Arsenal	Southampton
13:30 GMT	Ings 20', 44' Bednarek  51' Armstrong  71' Austin 85' Long  90+5'	Report	Mkhitaryan 28', 53' Koscielny  60'	Stadium: St Mary's Stadium Attendance: 29,497 Referee: Chris Kavanagh

Arsenal v Burnley

22 December 2018 (2018-12-22) 18	Arsenal	3–1	Burnley	Holloway
12:30 GMT	Aubameyang 14', 48' Papastathopoulos  41' Guendouzi  59' Iwobi 90+1'	Report	Barnes  36', 63' Wood  47' Mee  60' Cork  60' Westwood  90+1'	Stadium: Emirates Stadium Attendance: 59,493 Referee: Kevin Friend

Brighton & Hove Albion v Arsenal

26 December 2018 (2018-12-26) 19	Brighton & Hove Albion	1–1	Arsenal	Falmer
17:15 GMT	Locadia 35' Montoya  45+2' Murray  58'	Report	Aubameyang 7' Kolašinac  81'	Stadium: Falmer Stadium Attendance: 30,608 Referee: Anthony Taylor

Liverpool v Arsenal

29 December 2018 (2018-12-29) 20	Liverpool	5–1	Arsenal	Liverpool
17:30 GMT	Firmino 14', 16', 65' (pen.) Robertson  26' Mané 32' Salah 45+2' (pen.)	Report	Maitland-Niles 11' Xhaka  33' Papastathopoulos  90+2'	Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 53,326 Referee: Michael Oliver

Arsenal v Fulham

1 January 2019 (2019-01-01) 21	Arsenal	4–1	Fulham	Holloway
15:00 GMT	Xhaka 25' Lacazette 55' Ramsey 79' Aubameyang 83'	Report	Kamara 69' Fosu-Mensah  77'	Stadium: Emirates Stadium Attendance: 59,887 Referee: Graham Scott

West Ham United v Arsenal

12 January 2019 (2019-01-12) 22	West Ham United	1–0	Arsenal	Stratford
12:30 GMT	Rice 48'	Report	Mustafi  46' Kolašinac  60'	Stadium: London Stadium Attendance: 59,946 Referee: Jonathan Moss

Arsenal v Chelsea

19 January 2019 (2019-01-19) 23	Arsenal	2–0	Chelsea	Holloway
17:30 GMT	Lacazette 14' Koscielny 39'	Report	David Luiz  37' Barkley  90+5'	Stadium: Emirates Stadium Attendance: 59,979 Referee: Anthony Taylor

Arsenal v Cardiff City

29 January 2019 (2019-01-29) 24	Arsenal	2–1	Cardiff City	Holloway
19:45 GMT	Monreal  29' Guendouzi  45+2' Aubameyang 66' (pen.) Lacazette  81', 83'	Report	Paterson  36' Arter  63' Ralls  90' Mendez-Laing 90+3'	Stadium: Emirates Stadium Attendance: 59,933 Referee: Mike Dean

Manchester City v Arsenal

3 February 2019 (2019-02-03) 25	Manchester City	3–1	Arsenal	Manchester
16:30 GMT	Agüero 1', 44', 61' Gündoğan  65'	Report	Koscielny 11' Torreira  40'	Stadium: Etihad Stadium Attendance: 54,483 Referee: Martin Atkinson

Huddersfield Town v Arsenal

9 February 2019 (2019-02-09) 26	Huddersfield Town	1–2	Arsenal	Huddersfield
15:00 GMT	Schindler  36' Kongolo  49' Grant 90+3' Diakhaby  90+4'	Report	Iwobi 16' Lacazette 44' Maitland-Niles  55' Kolašinac  90+3'	Stadium: John Smith's Stadium Attendance: 24,182 Referee: Jonathan Moss

Arsenal v Southampton

24 February 2019 (2019-02-24) 27	Arsenal	2–0	Southampton	Holloway
14:05 GMT	Lacazette 6' Mkhitaryan 17'	Report		Stadium: Emirates Stadium Attendance: 59,877 Referee: Graham Scott

Arsenal v Bournemouth

27 February 2019 (2019-02-27) 28	Arsenal	5–1	Bournemouth	Holloway
19:45 GMT	Özil 4' Mkhitaryan 27' Papastathopoulos  36' Koscielny 47' Aubameyang 59' Torreira  69' Lacazette 78'	Report	Mousset 30' King  32' Daniels  77'	Stadium: Emirates Stadium Attendance: 59,618 Referee: Chris Kavanagh

Tottenham Hotspur v Arsenal

2 March 2019 (2019-03-02) 29	Tottenham Hotspur	1–1	Arsenal	Wembley
12:30 GMT	Lamela  63' Rose  69' Kane 74' (pen.) Llorente  84'	Report	Ramsey 16' Mkhitaryan  58' Xhaka  74' Torreira  90+5'	Stadium: Wembley Stadium Attendance: 81,332 Referee: Anthony Taylor

Arsenal v Manchester United

10 March 2019 (2019-03-10) 30	Arsenal	2–0	Manchester United	Holloway
16:30 GMT	Xhaka 12' Papastathopoulos  38' Aubameyang 69' (pen.) Kolašinac  90'	Report	Matić  68' Pogba  76'	Stadium: Emirates Stadium Attendance: 60,000 Referee: Jonathan Moss

Arsenal v Newcastle United

1 April 2019 (2019-04-01) 31	Arsenal	2–0	Newcastle United	Holloway
20:00 BST	Ramsey 30' Monreal  59' Kolašinac  73' Lacazette 83'	Report	Diamé  72'	Stadium: Emirates Stadium Attendance: 59,869 Referee: Anthony Taylor

Everton v Arsenal

7 April 2019 (2019-04-07) 32	Everton	1–0	Arsenal	Liverpool
14:05 BST	Jagielka 10' Gomes  50'	Report	Guendouzi  6' Papastathopoulos  25' Mustafi  82' Monreal  86'	Stadium: Goodison Park Attendance: 39,400 Referee: Kevin Friend

Watford v Arsenal

15 April 2019 (2019-04-15) 33	Watford	0–1	Arsenal	Watford
20:00 BST	Deeney  11' Capoue  54' Hughes  86'	Report	Aubameyang 10'	Stadium: Vicarage Road Attendance: 20,480 Referee: Craig Pawson

Arsenal v Crystal Palace

21 April 2019 (2019-04-21) 34	Arsenal	2–3	Crystal Palace	Holloway
16:00 BST	Mavropanos  16' Özil 47',  63' Guendouzi  68' Aubameyang 77' Mustafi  85'	Report	Benteke 17' Zaha 61' McArthur 69' Ward  81'	Stadium: Emirates Stadium Attendance: 59,929 Referee: Jonathan Moss

Wolverhampton Wanderers v Arsenal

24 April 2019 (2019-04-24) 35	Wolverhampton Wanderers	3–1	Arsenal	Wolverhampton
19:45 BST	Doherty  17', 37' Neves 28' Jota 45+2' Bennett  84'	Report	Monreal  27' Xhaka  31' Torreira  45' Papastathopoulos 80'	Stadium: Molineux Stadium Attendance: 31,436 Referee: Stuart Attwell

Leicester City v Arsenal

28 April 2019 (2019-04-28) 36	Leicester City	3–0	Arsenal	Leicester
12:00 BST	Ndidi  13' Tielemans 59' Pereira  65' Chilwell  70' Vardy 86', 90+5'	Report	Maitland-Niles  8'  36' Papastathopoulos  64'	Stadium: King Power Stadium Attendance: 32,037 Referee: Michael Oliver

Arsenal v Brighton & Hove Albion

5 May 2019 (2019-05-05) 37	Arsenal	1–1	Brighton & Hove Albion	Holloway
16:30 BST	Aubameyang 9' (pen.) Papastathopoulos  14' Xhaka  60' Lichtsteiner  64' Guendouzi  83' Mustafi  84'	Report	Groß  45+2' Murray 61' (pen.) Dunk  63'	Stadium: Emirates Stadium Attendance: 59,965 Referee: Anthony Taylor

Burnley v Arsenal

12 May 2019 (2019-05-12) 38	Burnley	1–3	Arsenal	Burnley
15:00 BST	Heaton  3' Barnes  22', 65' Tarkowski  45+3' Lowton  48' Cork  75'	Report	Aubameyang 52', 63' Guendouzi  53' Nketiah 90+4'	Stadium: Turf Moor Attendance: 21,461 Referee: Mike Dean

FA Cup

Main article: 2018–19 FA Cup

Blackpool v Arsenal

5 January 2019 (2019-01-05) Third round	Blackpool	0–3	Arsenal	Blackpool
17:30 GMT		Report	Willock 11', 37' Kolašinac  56' Iwobi 82'	Stadium: Bloomfield Road Attendance: 8,955 Referee: Mike Dean

Arsenal v Manchester United

25 January 2019 (2019-01-25) Fourth round	Arsenal	1–3	Manchester United	Holloway
19:55 GMT	Aubameyang 43' Koscielny  54' Kolašinac  86' Guendouzi  90+1'	Report	Sánchez 31' Lingard 33',  76' Young  68' Martial 82' Rashford  86'	Stadium: Emirates Stadium Attendance: 59,571 Referee: Craig Pawson

EFL Cup

Main article: 2018–19 EFL Cup

Arsenal v Brentford

26 September 2018 (2018-09-26) Third round	Arsenal	3–1	Brentford	Holloway
19:45 BST	Welbeck 5', 37',  63' Lichtsteiner  28' Lacazette 90+3'	Report	Konsa  37' Judge 58'	Stadium: Emirates Stadium Attendance: 49,586 Referee: Mike Dean

Arsenal v Blackpool

31 October 2018 (2018-10-31) Fourth round	Arsenal	2–1	Blackpool	Holloway
19:45 GMT	Guendouzi  22'  56' Lichtsteiner 33' Jenkinson  45+2' Smith Rowe 50'	Report	O'Connor 66',  84'	Stadium: Emirates Stadium Attendance: 48,168 Referee: David Coote

Arsenal v Tottenham Hotspur

19 December 2018 Quarter-finals	Arsenal	0–2	Tottenham Hotspur	Holloway
19:45 GMT	Guendouzi  45+2' Xhaka  77'	Report	Son 21' Alli 59',  85' Eriksen  90+4'	Stadium: Emirates Stadium Attendance: 59,016 Referee: Jonathan Moss

UEFA Europa League

Main article: 2018–19 UEFA Europa League

Group stage

Main article: 2018–19 UEFA Europa League group stage § Group E

Arsenal v Vorskla Poltava

20 September 2018 1	Arsenal	4–2	Vorskla Poltava	London, England
21:00 CEST	Aubameyang 32', 56' Welbeck 48' Özil 74'	Report	Sharpar  19', 90+3' Chesnakov 77'	Stadium: Emirates Stadium Attendance: 59,039 Referee: Bart Vertenten (Belgium)

Qarabağ v Arsenal

4 October 2018 2	Qarabağ	0–3	Arsenal	Baku, Azerbaijan
18:55 CEST	Medvedev  33'	Report	Papastathopoulos 4' Holding  43' Smith Rowe 53' Guendouzi 80'	Stadium: Olympic Stadium Attendance: 63,412 Referee: Davide Massa (Italy)

Sporting CP v Arsenal

25 October 2018 3	Sporting CP	0–1	Arsenal	Lisbon, Portugal
18:55 CEST	Acuña  39' Coates  71' Cabral  90' Battaglia  90'	Report	Holding  46' Mkhitaryan  51' Welbeck 78'	Stadium: Estádio José Alvalade Attendance: 40,784 Referee: Damir Skomina (Slovenia)

Arsenal v Sporting CP

8 November 2018 4	Arsenal	0–0	Sporting CP	London, England
21:00 CET	Lichtsteiner  21' Guendouzi  72'	Report	Gaspar  41' Acuña  67' Luís  74' Mathieu  87'	Stadium: Emirates Stadium Attendance: 59,758 Referee: Gediminas Mažeika (Lithuania)

Vorskla Poltava v Arsenal

29 November 2018 5	Vorskla Poltava	0–3	Arsenal	Kiev, Ukraine
18:55 CET	Sklyar  29' Sharpar  32' Kolomoyets  72'	Report	Smith Rowe 11' Ramsey 27' (pen.) Willock 41' Holding  53'	Stadium: NSC Olimpiyskiy Stadium Attendance: 7,751 Referee: Bartosz Frankowski (Poland)

Arsenal v Qarabağ

13 December 2018 6	Arsenal	1–0	Qarabağ	London, England
21:00 CET	Lacazette 16'	Report	Qarayev  82'	Stadium: Emirates Stadium Attendance: 58,101 Referee: Jens Maae (Denmark)

Knockout phase

Main article: 2018–19 UEFA Europa League knockout phase

Round of 32

BATE Borisov v Arsenal

14 February 2019 (2019-02-14) First leg	BATE Borisov	1–0	Arsenal	Barysaw, Belarus
18:55 CET (UTC+1)	Drahun 45',  87' Dubajić  72' Filipović  86'	Report	Xhaka  9' Lacazette  85'	Stadium: Borisov Arena Attendance: 12,527 Referee: Srđan Jovanović (Serbia)

Arsenal v BATE Borisov

21 February 2019 (2019-02-21) Second leg	Arsenal	3–0 (3–1 agg.)	BATE Borisov	London, England
18:55 CET (UTC+1)	Volkov 4' (o.g.) Mustafi 39' Papastathopoulos 60'	Report		Stadium: Emirates Stadium Attendance: 58,812 Referee: Alberto Undiano Mallenco (Spain)

Round of 16

Rennes v Arsenal

7 March 2019 First leg	Rennes	3–1	Arsenal	Rennes, France
18:55 CET (UTC+1)	Bourigeaud  38', 42' Monreal 65' (o.g.) Zeffane  87' Sarr 88'	Report	Iwobi 4' Papastathopoulos  34'  41' Xhaka  61'	Stadium: Roazhon Park Attendance: 29,100 Referee: Ivan Kružliak (Slovakia)

Arsenal v Rennes

14 March 2019 Second leg	Arsenal	3–0 (4–3 agg.)	Rennes	London, England
21:00 CET (UTC+1)	Aubameyang 5', 72',  72' Maitland-Niles 15' Lacazette  31' Mkhitaryan  77' Kolašinac  90+3'	Report	Mexer  18' Grenier  55' Bourigeaud  81' Traoré  90+5'	Stadium: Emirates Stadium Attendance: 59,453 Referee: Andris Treimanis (Latvia)

Quarter-finals

Arsenal v Napoli

11 April 2019 First leg	Arsenal	2–0	Napoli	London, England
21:00 CEST (UTC+2)	Ramsey 15' Koulibaly 25' (o.g.)	Report	Hysaj  47'	Stadium: Emirates Stadium Attendance: 59,738 Referee: Alberto Undiano Mallenco (Spain)

Napoli v Arsenal

18 April 2019 Second leg	Napoli	0–1 (0–3 agg.)	Arsenal	Naples, Italy
21:00 CEST (UTC+2)	Insigne  43' Callejón  90'	Report	Lacazette 36' Čech  74'	Stadium: Stadio San Paolo Attendance: 39,438 Referee: Ovidiu Hațegan (Romania)

Semi-finals

Arsenal v Valencia

2 May 2019 First leg	Arsenal	3–1	Valencia	London, England
20:00 BST (UTC+1)	Lacazette 18', 26' Aubameyang 90+1'	Report	Diakhaby 11',  31' Parejo  70'	Stadium: Emirates Stadium Attendance: 58,969 Referee: Clément Turpin (France)

Valencia v Arsenal

9 May 2019 Second leg	Valencia	2–4 (3–7 agg.)	Arsenal	Valencia, Spain
21:00 CEST (UTC+2)	Gameiro 11', 58' Garay  38' Gayà  43' Gabriel  90+2'	Report	Aubameyang 17', 69', 88' Lacazette 50',  90+2' Özil  62'	Stadium: Mestalla Attendance: 44,481 Referee: Danny Makkelie (Netherlands)

Final

Chelsea v Arsenal

29 May 2019 Final	Chelsea	4–1	Arsenal	Baku, Azerbaijan
21:00 CEST (UTC+2)	Giroud 49' Pedro  56', 60' Hazard 65' (pen.), 72' Christensen  68'	Report	Iwobi 69'	Stadium: Olympic Stadium Attendance: 51,370 Referee: Gianluca Rocchi (Italy)

Coaching Staff

Updated 19 July 2018.

Position	Name
Head Coach	Unai Emery
First Team Assistant Head Coach	Juan Carlos Carcedo
First Team Assistant Head Coach	Steve Bould
First Team Coach	Pablo Villa
Goalkeeping Coach	Javi García
Goalkeeping Coach	Sal Bibbo
Head of Football	Raúl Sanllehí
Head of Recruitment	Vacant
Chief Contract Negotiator	Hussein Fahmy
Head of Coach and Player Development	Marcel Lucassen
Head of Academy	Per Mertesacker
Head of Academy Football Operations	Lee Herron
Director of High Performance	Darren Burgess
Head of Performance	Shad Forsythe
Head of Medical Services	Gary O'Driscoll
Head Physiotherapist	Chris Morgan
First Team Physiotherapist	Paulo Barreira
First Team Physiotherapist	Jordan Reece
First Team Rehab Physiotherapist	Tim Parham
Strength and Conditioning Coach	Julen Masach
Strength and Conditioning Coach	Barry Solan
Masseur	Darren Page
Soft Tissue Therapist	Takahiro Yamamoto
Kit Manager	Paul Akers
Performance Nutritionist	Richard Allison
Sport Scientist	Tom Allen
Data Scientist	Mikhail Zhilkin
Data/Video Analyst	Victor Manas
Senior Football Analyst	Ben Knapper
First Team Analyst	Mark Curtis
Football Analyst Assistant	Sam Hayball

Awards

Arsenal Player of the Month award

Awarded monthly to the player that was chosen by fan voting on Arsenal.com

Month	Player	Votes
August	Matteo Guendouzi	68%
September	Alexandre Lacazette	59%
October	Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang	55%
November	Lucas Torreira	70%
December	Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang	41%
January	Alexandre Lacazette	65%
February	Henrikh Mkhitaryan	40%
March	Bernd Leno	70%

Arsenal Goal of the Month award

Awarded monthly to the goal that was chosen by fan voting on Arsenal.com

Month	Player	Competition	Opponent	Votes
August	Henrikh Mkhitaryan	Premier League	Chelsea	61%
September	Alexandre Lacazette	Premier League	Everton	57%
October	Aaron Ramsey	Premier League	Fulham	38%
November	Alexandre Lacazette	Premier League	Liverpool	71%
December	Henrikh Mkhitaryan	Premier League	Southampton	40%
January	Alexandre Lacazette	Premier League	Chelsea	56%
February	Mesut Özil	Premier League	A.F.C. Bournemouth	40%
March	Aaron Ramsey	Premier League	Tottenham	46%

Sponsorship

Lead sponsors	Global sponsors
Emirates (main sponsor) Puma (kit manufacturer) Visit Rwanda (left sleeve sponsor)	Acronis Betconstruct BYD Cover-More Gatorade Vitality WorldRemit Zoom