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Bukayo Saka has delivered a strong response to critics who previously questioned Arsenal’s mental strength, saying that those who once branded the team as “bottlers” are now “going into hiding mode.” Following Arsenal’s long-awaited Premier League title victory, the England winger declared that the squad has earned the right to answer back to their doubters.

Saka takes aim at ‘bottle’ critics

The Arsenal star promised to “find” those who publicly dismissed the team’s chances of winning the Premier League title. The Gunners were crowned champions after Manchester City’s draw against Bournemouth on Tuesday night, sparking massive celebrations across north London and bringing an end to years of frustration for fans at the Emirates Stadium.

In an exclusive interview with TNT Sports, Saka was outspoken about the perception surrounding Mikel Arteta’s side over the past few seasons. “We know what everyone says about us and what we have to deal with in the club, the doubts we have, can we really do it?” Saka said. “We’ve done it now, time to enjoy it. People are starting to go into hiding mode, but we’re going to find them.”

From ‘cry babies’ to title winners

The 24-year-old noted that Arsenal often faced harsher criticism than other top clubs and that any attempt to respond previously led to them being called “cry babies.” He believes that the team has finally overcome its “soft” label that used to follow them during past title challenges.

“I don’t know why it is,” Saka said while discussing the intense scrutiny. “We can say it now freely, but before if we said it, they’d say we’re cry babies. Things about Arsenal are spoken about much more than they need to be, and made into a bigger thing if we drop points or lose a game. It comes along with the joke, you saw everyone with their bottles out. It’s a bit of banter, people are going to give it to us, and we’ll give it back. We’ve earned the right to. It’s time to enjoy it.”

Overcoming personal challenges

While celebrating the team’s success, Saka admitted that his personal journey this season was far from easy. The winger missed several weeks due to injury but returned to make decisive contributions with goals and assists against Newcastle, Fulham, and Burnley. He acknowledged that maintaining his fitness was a constant challenge throughout the campaign.

“There’s a lot to say. The last few years, physically I haven’t been at my best level and I paid the price with some of my performances,” he said. “I know that myself, I don’t need anyone to tell me. This was a very important year for us. For me, I had to keep my spirit high, stay faithful and believe that God would deliver for us in the end. It was tough, it tested me a lot this year, but in the end we’ve done it. The people in this club — it’s not just me — a lot of players and staff have had tough moments this year, but we stuck together and it feels so special now we’ve done it.”

Eyeing European glory in Paris

Though the celebrations are ongoing, Arsenal’s season is not yet complete as they prepare for a historic Champions League final against Paris Saint-Germain. Having secured the domestic title, Saka believes that the team’s new-found confidence and sense of freedom will help them chase their first-ever European Cup triumph.

“We’ve obviously never won the Champions League before, and a lot of people after we won against Atletico Madrid are talking to me about the final, how they cried,” Saka said. “That’s what it means — to win in Europe is so massive. We can do that next week and it would be amazing for the club to make history. We’d love to do that. I think it’s more on ourselves, I’d say. Obviously we wanted the Premier League, everyone knows that. Now we’ve done it, it’s going to give us more confidence, more freedom, a flow going into that match.”