The 2014–15 season was Arsenal's 23rd season in the Premier League and 89th consecutive season in the top flight of English football. The club participated in the Premier League, FA Cup, Football League Cup, FA Community Shield and the UEFA Champions League. Arsenal finished third in the Premier League and won both the FA Community Shield and the FA Cup.
Arsène Wenger, club manager since 1996, signed several players in the preseason, including Chilean winger Alexis Sánchez from Barcelona, who would be the team's top scorer and win Arsenal Player of the Season. Wenger led the "Gunners" through a turbulent start with player injuries and poor form placing the side as low as eighth in December. In the second half of the season, Arsenal found good form, challenging for the Premier League title with an eight game winning streak in the latter stages. However, following a nil-all draw in April with eventual champions Chelsea, Arsenal all but lost their chances at winning the title. Arsenal repeated their 2014 victory, winning the 2015 FA Cup final 4–0 against Aston Villa; thus becoming the most successful team outright in the FA Cup, with a total of 12 titles.
In the UEFA Champions League, Arsenal finished second in their group behind Borussia Dortmund on goal difference. Arsenal was eliminated on away goals over two legs against the Ligue 1 side Monaco in the round of 16. It was the fifth consecutive season Arsenal left the competition in the round of 16 phase.
Background
The 2014–15 season marked Arsenal's 23rd consecutive year in the Premier League, their 111th season in the English top flight, and their 89th consecutive season in the tier. This season the club extended the record for the longest continuous run in the top flight which began with their promotion in the 1919–20 season. During the previous season, Arsenal finished fourth in the Premier League behind Manchester City, Chelsea and Liverpool; the club won the FA Cup after defeating Hull City in the final. Additionally, they finished in the round of 16 of the UEFA Champions League and the fourth round of the Football League Cup. Ahead of the new season, the club announced that playing kits would be manufactured by German sportswear company Puma, after a 20-year association with Nike came to an end. The club also announced an increase in their ticket prices of 3% in line with inflation. Long term manager Arsène Wenger, who joined the club in 1996, extended his contract with the club through May 2017. Arsenal chairman Chips Keswick commentated on how Wenger "has established Arsenal for its exciting playing style around the world", and that he has "no doubt [Arsenal] have an exciting future ahead of [them] with him leading the team".
Summer transfer window
On 26 June 2014, Arsenal announced that 11 players would depart the club on 30 June at the conclusion of their contracts. The list included loanees Kim Källström and Emiliano Viviano, along with players who signed pre-contract agreements: Łukasz Fabiański (Swansea City), Bacary Sagna (Manchester City), Zak Ansah (Charlton Athletic), Zachari Fagan (Welling United), and Chuks Aneke (Zulte Waregem). The list of players also included Leander Siemann, Nicklas Bendtner, Park Chu-young and Daniel Boateng.
The club transferred a selection of players ahead of the season for undisclosed fees; these players included German midfielder Thomas Eisfeld, Swiss international defender Johan Djourou, and Spanish defender Ignasi Miquel. The club received a £15 million fee from Barcelona for the transfer of Belgian defender Thomas Vermaelen, who left after making 110 Premier League appearances for Arsenal. It was also reported that Arsenal received benefits for selling a selection of contractual rights including clauses with Carlos Vela at Real Sociedad, and Cesc Fàbregas at Chelsea.
The club announced the much-anticipated transfer of Chilean forward Alexis Sánchez on 10 July from Barcelona, who joined the club on a long-term contract for a reported transfer fee of £35 million. A week later, French defender Mathieu Debuchy joined the club for an undisclosed fee; he was seen as a direct replacement for the departed Sagna. On 27 July, Colombian goalkeeper David Ospina signed for Arsenal from French club Nice for a reported transfer fee of £3 million, replacing former goalkeeper Fabiański, who had ended his contract.
The club announced the signing of English defender Calum Chambers from Southampton on 28 July; his transfer fee was reported to cost the club £16 million. Wenger admitted that Chambers' transfer fee was a gamble for a young player, but he had faith in the player to demonstrate his versatility whilst at the club. Arsenal's final first-team summer signing was Danny Welbeck, his transfer from Manchester United was reported to have cost Arsenal £16 million.
During the summer transfer window, a variety of players left the club on loan, this included first-team players such as Carl Jenkinson to West Ham United, and Francis Coquelin to Charlton Athletic.
Pre-season In preparation for their season, Arsenal played Conference South side Boreham Wood at their home stadium Meadow Park. The "Gunners" defeated Boreham Wood 2–0 with players who did not attend the 2014 FIFA World Cup; the team won comfortably with goals from academy players Kristoffer Olsson and Benik Afobe. Arsenal then travelled to Harrison, United States to play the New York Red Bulls. Former Arsenal player Thierry Henry played against his former club as his side defeated Arsenal 1–0, and Bradley Wright-Phillips, the son of former Arsenal player Ian Wright, scored the only goal against a heavily rotated Arsenal side. In August, Arsenal hosted the 2014 Emirates Cup which was an invitational friendly tournament at the Emirates Stadium with Valencia, Benfica and Monaco participating. Arsenal played Benfica first, defeating the Portuguese side 5–1 with four goals from Yaya Sanogo and a volleyed goal from academy player Joel Campbell. Arsenal then played Monaco, losing 1–0 due to a Radamel Falcao goal. Valencia won the Emirates Cup tournament and Arsenal placed second.
Match details
FA Community Shield Arsenal qualified for the FA Community Shield on virtue of winning the FA Cup during the preceding season; they faced Manchester City, the Premier League champions. In Arsenal's first competitive game of the season, the club defeated Manchester City 3–0 with goals from Santi Cazorla, Aaron Ramsey and Giroud. Wenger was happy with Arsenal's bright start to the season pointing out after the game that his team exhibited a "complete performance"; he also acknowledged the team's flaws, saying that during the second half "we lost a bit more of the ball than in the first half and our movements were less fluent".
Match details
Premier League
August–October
Arsenal began their Premier League season at the Emirates Stadium against Crystal Palace on 16 August 2014. The visitors took the lead through Brede Hangeland's header from a corner in the first half, but Arsenal replied with a Laurent Koscielny equaliser and a late stoppage time winner from Ramsey. Arsenal defeated Crystal Palace, who had a player sent off, and gave the club a winning start to their league campaign. The club then went on a three-game winless run with draws against Everton at Goodison Park, Leicester City at the King Power Stadium, and after the international break, Manchester City at the Emirates Stadium. New signing Sánchez scored his first league goal for the club against Leicester City, but the club also lost Giroud and Debuchy to injury during their winless run. Arsenal's misfortune was momentarily suspended after a comprehensive 3–0 away win over Aston Villa, with a first Arsenal league goal for new signing Welbeck, a calm Mesut Özil finish and an own goal from Villa defender Aly Cissokho.
On 27 September, Arsenal faced Tottenham Hotspur in the North London derby at the Emirates Stadium. The match ended in a 1–1 draw; Spurs' Nacer Chadli gave his side the lead early in the second half, but Arsenal responded with Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain's effort against a wrong-footed Tottenham defence with 15 minutes left in the match. After the game, Wenger voiced his frustration at Arsenal's set-piece routines saying that the players did not create enough from these opportunities; Wenger also mentioned that Ramsey and club captain Mikel Arteta sustained muscular injuries, and they would be temporarily unavailable. Arsenal's misfortune continued when they lost 2–0 against rivals Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, with the "Blue's" Eden Hazard and Diego Costa on the scoresheet. The loss meant the Wenger had not defeated Chelsea manager José Mourinho after 12 different attempts. Arsenal also lost playmaker Özil to injury during the match and could not play for three months.
With the hope of finding good form, the club played Steve Bruce's Hull City after the international break, where the "Gunners" drew 2–2 with Sánchez and Welbeck netting the goals for Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium. Wenger, frustrated with the result, criticised his players for conceding "too many goals" as a result of a lack of concentration. Arsenal won their final match in October when they defeated Sunderland at the Stadium of Light, capitalising off player mistakes, and the club finished the month in fifth place on the Premier League table.
November–February
A Sánchez brace (two goals) and a first senior goal from Chambers helped Arsenal dispatch Sean Dyche's Burnley 3–0 at home on 1 November. The Chilean took his club goal tally to ten goals during the match, Wenger praised Sánchez after the match by comparing the player to Uruguayan forward Luis Suárez in his post-match interview. Travelling to Wales, Arsenal then lost to Swansea City 2–1, after having a one goal lead courtesy of a tidy Sánchez finish. The club's first home defeat came against Manchester United; the 2–1 loss was Arsenal's first and only consecutive defeat in the Premier League during the season. A Kieran Gibbs own goal and a tidy Wayne Rooney finish meant that Giroud's goal in added time was just a consolation; after the match, Wenger called his side "defensibly naive" and also thought the game was "one way traffic" in United's favour. The defeat was a dent in Arsenal's title hopes, given that Jack Wilshere was also injured after a heavy Paddy McNair challenge. The club ended their month positively with a tight 1–0 away win against West Bromwich Albion, courtesy of a Welbeck header.
On 3 December, Arsenal defeated Southampton 1–0, and three days later lost 3–2 away to Stoke City. During the game against Stoke, new signing Chambers was sent off after receiving a second yellow card and Wenger was again critical of his side, calling Arsenal "soft". With Giroud and Carzorla scoring braces, Arsenal later defeated Newcastle United 4–1 at the Emirates Stadium to recover from their defeat to Stoke City. Arsenal then travelled to Anfield to play a struggling Liverpool side who were placed mid-table; the "Gunners" drew 2–2 with Liverpool with Philippe Coutinho and Martin Škrtel scoring the goals for the "Reds". On Boxing Day, Arsenal defeated Queens Park Rangers 2–1, and later dispatched West Ham United on 28 December to end 2014 with a victory. On 5 January 2015, Arsenal sent Lukas Podolski on loan to Inter Milan for the remainder of the season; Podolski had not started a Premier League game for Arsenal during the season, and had only made four appearances in Arsenal's UEFA Champions League group stage campaign. Arsenal also loaned Yaya Sanogo to Crystal Palace for the remainder of the season, the Frenchman had only made five appearances for Arsenal during the season. To reinforce the squad, the club signed Gabriel Paulista from La Liga side Villarreal for £11.2 million.