FA Premier League
ARSENAL 5 (Xhaka 11, 14,  Saka 27, Gabriel Jesus 58, Kiwior 78)
WOLVERHAMPTON WANDERERS 0

IN recent seasons, there hasn’t always been much will for the fans to stay behind for the lap of appreciation on the final day of the season. Alexandre Lacazette, for example, bid farewell to a half empty Emirates Stadium 12 months ago and probably deserved better.

This year it was all smiles and nobody appeared to have to make a quick dash to the station. In fact, captain Martin Odegaard and manager Mikel Arteta could hardly be heard as they tried to deliver rather emotional sign-off speeches.

And  this year’s big apparent departee, Granit Xhaka, let’s call him a mercurial midfielder, made a weepy-eyed goodbye with healthy numbers staying behind and the majority of them chanting his name.

How did we get to the song: ‘Granit Xhaka, we want you to stay?’

Needless to say he has had an up and down time at Arsenal but his final season – Arteta was coy about what is actually going on with a proposed move to Bayer Leverkusen at the end of the match – has uncovered the talent which was disguised by mental lapses and red mist red cards for too long.

As if to underline the point and Arteta’s tactical manoeuvre to play him higher up the pit, he scored twice in the opening 15 minutes what felt like a perfect sayonara. He miss-kicked the chance to grab a hat-trick but scored once with a firm header from Gabriel Jesus’s cross and then stabbing in a shot after Bukayo Saka and Odegaard had exchanged passes.

Wolves had show flashes of purpose in these busy first ten minutes but once Xhaka had confirmed the script, this was always only going to be a leaving party.

The regrets about near misses of this campaign seem to have rubbed off. There is a realism amongst the fans about how well they have done to go from nobody’s pick for a top fourth berth to the only real challenger to Manchester City. Seventeen points ahead of Liverpool, 24 points ahead of Spurs and 40 points ahead of Chelsea. Those big names and Tottenham had been tipped to finish above Mikel Areta’s project.

And it does feel like one big project, spirtual even, maybe cult-like. Whatever, the manager spoke again today of the importance of connection and liking the group, a link between field and terraes which has been about more than bringing in a drum.

As Wolves folded, almost understanding they had stepped in to a leavers ball, Arsenal went 3-0 up by half time. Not Xhaka this time, but Saka. The winger, who should share player of the season talk with Odegaard, spun past his man and curled a beauty into the far corner. He scored in the first game, he scored in the last. He has been everything to Arsenal.

It became a guessing game as to how many the Gunners would get, but it seemed important that Gabriel Jesus was among the scorers. A bit of doubt has begun to appear about how many goals he’ll ever be able to weigh in with. It would be foolish to compare his role to a Haaland or a Kane, but he does need a more lethal streak sometimes. This afternoon, he headed at the back stick from the newly-bleached Leandro Trossard’s cross.

Late on, Jakub Kiwior claimed his first Arsenal goal since moving from Spezia in January, although Jose Sa will have been disappointed he wasn’t able to repel hit shot that followed a knock down from a corner.

Maybe it would not have all been such a cruise if Arsenal had not been clearly keen to send their fans away for the summer without souring a comeback season with three defeats in the final three games. The malaise and lack of imagination which affected the Gunners in losses against Brighton and Nottingham Forest.

Of Xhaka, Arteta joked with journalists that they knew more than him if they were sure Xhaka has now played his last game at the Emirates. It was a little silly given Xhaka’s own behaviour as he toured the pitch one last time, waving at a big banner that said ‘Farewell Xhaka’.

But Arteta added the ovation was “well deserved”, adding: “He had an incredible season.”

The Swiss midfielder, one of the last links back to the Wenger age, may not be the only one leaving the group. The futures of Reiss Nelson, Nuno Tavares, Flo Balogun and Cedric Soares need resolving, while it’s not certain what the next steps will hold for Kieran Tierney, Emile Smith Rowe and Fabio Vieira, all of him are craving more game time,

Arteta said he would “reflect and analyse first on what we have in the house and how we can improve and take players to another level” when asked about whether he would be racing for early transfer window signings.

“Next season will be a challenging season, but a season of plenty of opportunities,” the manager said.

“It will be a season of plenty of opportunities. We must do it again, and do it better.”

He added: “The destination has to be trophies, bur we have to enjoy the journey. We have special people in this club, we have an incredible group of players and amazing support and that has to be enjoyed.”

And today they did just that.