Behind the scenes at Selhurst Park as Arsenal lift the Premier League title
When I think back to magical moments that will occupy my thoughts as the years pass, the Arsenal Premier League trophy lift at Selhurst Park was an experience that will no doubt dominate. There are privileges to this job, and there isn’t a day that passes that I do not thank my lucky stars for the places it takes me.
Without question, had the Emirates Stadium played host to Arsenal’s final game of the Premier League season, where they were crowned champions, that would have been gold. However, Selhurst Park has so many benefits, particularly for its media facilities and structure for an event like this.
The player’s dressing room is situated between the press room and the press box. Meaning to get from one area to the other, the media and players must cross paths.
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This happens a lot with mixed zones and the like, but on an occasion such as this, never seen in this part of South London before, what we experienced was completely unique and perhaps will not be seen again. So, let me take you inside the Arsenal celebrations after 22 years of waiting.
From the moment I stepped off the train at Selhurst station, there were red and white shirts everywhere. It almost felt like walking to a home game, heightened further by the chants of, “Arsenal! Arsenal! Arsenal!” as we closed on the ground where the coaches had parked.
Clearly, thousands were around the ground who neither had tickets nor were local. We would find out later on that several fans who snuck in wearing high-vis jackets were ejected.
Security was tight, but lanyards were in short supply. It meant my media accreditation had to be pocketed and brought out only when asked, which here was a lot!
A press box is not a very literal name; usually, it is just a section in the stadium with desks, plugs, and, you pray, good Wifi, but in the case of Selhurst Park, it is a rare ground where the press box is a literal box. It also means, in the height of early summer with a heat wave striking the country, it’s equal to the surface of the sun.
So my detached accreditation became more of a hand fan than its typical use. The game itself was always secondary to what was happening, and after Arsenal had nearly blown a two-goal lead to win 2-1 on the day, the players rushed over to briefly celebrate with their supporters before being rushed back inside.
Steve Parish, the Palace chairman, emerged and took the microphone. He said, “First of all, congratulations to Arsenal, but can we have five minutes of quiet!”
It seems the Arsenal supporters only heard the first part as they immediately erupted into cheers. Parish responding, “Well, that didn’t help, did it?”
Arsenal were supposed to take to the field again after around 30 minutes, but it ended up being 45. Stan Kroenke and Josh Kroenke are walking the Premier League trophy across the pitch to the now-constructed plinth.
Peter Mujuzi, the Emirates Stadium Arsenal PA announcer, then took the microphone to start the party. Announcing the names of all the squad members while they took their medals. The press box, annoyingly, was set in the completely opposite corner of the field to where the away end was situated, but equipped with screens, no one missed a beat.
But as we left to attend the press conference, it became clear it would be some time before this would take place. Hanging around in the purgatorial in-between of the press lounge and press box, many of the press pack lingered exactly where the players had to walk through.
Which means getting front row seats to their reactions after finally leaving the field. Piero Hincapie, adorned with the flag of his homeland, Ecuador, was greeted by the official photographers tasked with taking the photos of the winners with their medals as they left the field.
On the wall were examples of what the players could do, often encouraged to bite down on the medial or present it proudly. Hincapie found these particularly amusing, laughing with his fellow Spanish-speaking teammates.
Myles Lewis-Skelly was soaking up all the noise from the suspiciously supportive fans in the Palace ends around the tunnel area, again highlighting just how many Arsenal fans had clearly managed to get into the ground. Before running through the zone shouting “Woo!” as loud as he could.
Ben White, sunglasses equipped and knee fully braced, came next. Cool as you like, and of course, hopeful of a swift recovery.
It was when Martin Odegaard came through, holding the trophy itself where eyes lit up everywhere. Seeing the silver, the gold, the ribbons made it all feel incredibly real, and now the victory could be seen with the naked eye.
But just as soon as the trophy appeared, it was gone, taken out of Martin’s arms and strangely rushed back to where it came, back onto the pitch. Many of us began looking around, wondering what on Earth had happened, and then we got our answer.
Mikel Arteta and Bukayo Saka, trophy now in their grasp, had taken the opportunity to reward those in the Palace end of the ground who had stayed a glimpse and a chance to cheer. Spinning around and rushing toward the stands, lifting the trophy high.
The press conference followed, and after the manager had spoken, he took the time to shake the hands of everyone in the pack who had covered the club home and away, with some, like myself, going to more than 60 games this season.
And there remains one more, to Budapest we go! A chance to turn this success into something truly unforgettable.
