One point. One game. Arteta's moment.

The setup

Arteta names his strongest available XI. Bukayo Saka starts. Viktor Gyökeres — 21 goals in his debut Arsenal season, which is the kind of stat that makes you wonder what took everyone so long — leads the line. West Ham away is not a gimme, but this Arsenal side hasn't been built for gimmies. They've been built for exactly this.

Back at the Emirates, a fan-club watch-along on the pitch sold out in 47 minutes. Forty-seven. The stadium will be full of people who aren't even at the game, standing on the grass where it could all be confirmed, watching a screen. That's either deeply modern or deeply beautiful, depending on your age.

What a win means

A victory settles it immediately. A draw settles it immediately. Only a loss keeps the door open — and even then, Manchester City would need to beat Aston Villa later in the day to make it mean anything. Pep Guardiola's side are playing the role of spectators with a very specific interest. They'll win, probably. It just won't matter.

Gyökeres arriving in north London and immediately hitting 21 goals in a debut season is the kind of transfer that makes other clubs' recruitment departments go very quiet in meetings. Arteta got his striker. Arteta got his title. The order of events is not a coincidence.

The bigger picture

This is the Arsenal that Arteta has been constructing, quietly and then loudly, for five years. Saka on the right, a world-class centre-forward, a defensive spine that doesn't flinch. The title race has been technically alive all season. Today it stops being technical.