Mikel Arteta
Arsenal may have won the Premier League title last season, but there is still ample room for improvement for Mikel Arteta's team.
The Gunners ended a gruelling 2025/26 campaign seven points clear of Manchester City. This deficit makes the league triumph look considerably more comfortable than it was, with the last few months of the season in particular extremely difficult to watch as an under-pressure and fatigued set of players scraped over the line.
Not only do Arteta's men have the opportunity to retain their crown in 2026/27, but they can do so in style, with some minor improvements here and there. Whilst being an elite defensive team last term, conceding just 27 league goals, they scored just 71 goals. Clearly, the North Londoners can become a significantly more threatening and lethal side offensively.
With that said, here are four players who either weren't in the fold at all last season or were on the periphery of Arteta's squad who could make a significant difference.
Ben White
Ben White
Jurrien Timber was outstanding last season, playing a major role in Arsenal's defensive solidity. The Dutchman was capable of nullifying the threat of any winger he faced, rendering the left-hand side of the Gunners' opponents completely ineffective.
He started 28 of Arsenal's first 31 league fixtures before sustaining an injury which kept him out of the final seven. Yet to fully recover from this setback, he's set to miss the opening few weeks of the season.
Ben White, on the flip side, started just five of these league matches before Timber's injury. However, he's enjoyed an impressive pre-season and is raring to go ahead of the new campaign, and fans may be surprised by the impact he makes on Arteta's team.
While he's never going to offer the elite defensive assurances Timber does, White can add a lot to Arsenal's game offensively. An exceptional passer from deep areas, White will set Arsenal up for more direct attacks with his distribution, while the quality of his cutbacks and crosses when played in on the overlap are vastly superior to his Dutch counterpart.
Overall, Arsenal may be somewhat more defensively fragile down their right-hand side, but they may also be significantly more threatening as an attacking team due to White's presence.
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Ben White's Attacking Statistics 2023/24 (Premier League Only)
Appearances
Goals
Assists
Key Passes per 90
Expected Assists per 90
Touches in Opposition Box per 90
Successful Crosses per 90
Bruno Guimaraes
Action Images via Reuters/Paul Childs
Arsenal completed the audacious signing of Bruno Guimaraes, Newcastle's captain and talisman, earlier this month, and this could prove to be one of the acquisitions of the summer in the Premier League.
While the Brazilian has a reputation for being a nasty, tough-tackling midfielder who protects his back four effectively, it's what he could add to Arsenal's attack which will elevate the Gunners' overall level.
Firstly, his ability to progress the ball through his punchy, line-breaking passes will get Arsenal up the pitch and into dangerous areas more frequently, but this attribute should also liberate Martin Odegaard. The Norwegian has been too inclined to drop deep to help facilitate ball progression over the last two seasons, detracting from his creative threat in and around the box.
With Guimaraes taking the ball progression mantle from Arsenal's skipper, he can remain higher up the pitch to influence proceedings in the final third. This was already on display in Sunday's Community Shield, with Odegaard breaking into the box on multiple occasions to make things happen.
However, Guimaraes will also provide value himself in advanced areas. He finished last season with nine goals and seven assists across all competitions, and his underlying numbers in this area were also impressive, as shown in the table below. Possessing dangerous attacking instincts and the ability to play a penetrative pass in the final third, expect Guimaraes' arrival to make Arsenal a lot more threatening.
Bruno Guimaraes' Attacking Statistics 2025/26 (Premier League Only)
Appearances
Goals
Assists
Key Passes per 90
Expected Assists per 90
Shots per 90
Myles Lewis-Skelly
Action Images via Reuters/Paul Childs
Like White, Myles Lewis-Skelly was on the periphery of Arteta's squad for much of last season. However, after unlocking him towards the end of the campaign in midfield, the teenager could play a hugely important role in 2026/27.
Reports suggesting he could be on his way out have been rubbished, and he's set to remain in North London to fight for his position with Guimaraes and Declan Rice.
While he's unlikely to pop up with decisive goals and assists like Guimaraes will, even if his exquisite pass for Riccardo Calafiori's opener in the Community Shield suggests he can, he's still likely to make a positive impact on how effective Arsenal are as an attacking unit.
When things got stale for Arteta's team last season, they struggled to break through the opposition's press and subsequently spent much of the game in their own defensive third. Lewis-Skelly is outstanding at eluding the first line of pressure, with his ability to turn his man and drive up the pitch not an attribute any of the Gunners' other midfielders really possess.
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Fees correct prior to summer 2026
Christos Tzolis
via Reuters
If Arsenal can't secure another left-winger before the transfer window is up, Christos Tzolis might end up playing a prominent role for Arteta in 2026/27. The Greek, who arrived from Club Brugge for just £34million this summer, was outstanding in pre-season, acclimating into his new team well.
Last term, Arsenal lacked players who made the right decision at the critical moment in the final third. The likes of Gabriel Martinelli, Noni Madueke and even Leandro Trossard frustrated in this aspect of the game. Decision-making is Tzolis' speciality.
Time and time again, the 24-year-old will play the right pass or take the right shot at the right time. This is how he has been so productive in his last three seasons, and there's no reason why this won't continue at a higher level.
Mikel Arteta
Mikel Arteta