Arteta has been handed new weapons aplentyplaceholder image
Arteta has been handed new weapons aplenty | AFP via Getty Images
Arsenal are still looking to add new players but one who got away has left the Gunners gutted.
Mikel Arteta would probably be content if the transfer window closed tomorrow even if the Arsenal boss could still do with a body or two in certain areas.
The midfield looks as strong as it has for some time with the additions of Martin Zubimendi and Christian Norgaard. Not only does the Gunners boss have depth, it has experience and the ability to rotate and keep players like Declan Rice sharper for longer. In a world cup year, it is a marathon not a sprint over the next couple of years.
Signing Noni Madueke and Viktor Gyokeres will have a similar effect, not only should the forward line be more clinical, but those who have been asked to go to the well, time, after time, won’t have to carry the same burden of expectation to play every minute of every game. Two good players in every position is a must if Arsenal are to topple Liverpool at the top of the Premier League.
Arsenal miss out as Chelsea sign Jorrel Hato
https://tbrfootball.com/how-rafael-leao-feels-about-leaving-ac-milan-after-tottenham-offered-chance-to-sign-him/
As with every club though, Arsenal can’t sign every player that they want and TBR’s transfer guru Graeme Bailey has claimed that new Chelsea signing Jorrel Hato was on Andrea Berta’s radar only to see him slip through their fingers. Signed for £37m, the versatile left-sided defender is highly-rated with the 19-year old a player who the Gunners were keen to sign.
According to Bailey though, it was all just a matter of timing: “It’s just one of those transfer situations that’s fallen the wrong way for Arsenal this time around. It felt right for Arsenal to go for someone like Zubimendi this summer for example, but with Hato, it’s just not landed for them. When it came to Arsenal signing Timber, they were on the right side of the coin, they weren’t favourites to get him but they pulled it off.
“But particularly with Zinchenko still around, it’s just how it’s landed, and they’ve missed out. I think Arsenal would have moved for Hato if they managed to offload Zinchenko, and there’s definitely a lot of frustration at the Emirates because they know what a talent Hato is. They fully expect him to go on and become a top-class European player.”
What position should Arsenal strengthen instead of left-back?
Oleksander Zinchenko might have been the player who Arteta was happy to let go, however, even without the Ukrainian, Arsenal are more than well-stocked when it comes to players capable of playing on the left. Myles Lewis-Skelly has made the position his own to the extent that he is now fighting for the England slot at just 18 and Riccardo Calafiori has shown what he is capable of too – when he is fit.
For Arsenal to justify spending £37m on another left-back or centre-half, they would have to be looking to do something similar to Liverpool and replace experienced players who have left or as part of a long-term plan. Even with Zinchenko leaving, they would still have two international players vying for one position in the team.
If more money is to be spent, it should be spent or at least put towards signing a real difference maker. Someone like Rodrygo would be a statement of intent and Eberechi Eze also continues to be linked with a move to The Emirates. Those players would make a difference, and Arteta has his own prodigy at left-back to soften the blow of losing out on Hato.
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