Pep roulette (noun, informal, football): The unpredictable team selections made by Pep Guardiola, often bemoaned by fantasy managers.
“Pep roulette” came to symbolise Guardiola’s habit of rotating even his biggest stars during Manchester City’s dominant Premier League campaigns. As City set new standards of consistency, no fixture guaranteed a place in the XI. Rotation preserved freshness, outwitted opponents, and showcased the depth of one of English football’s strongest squads.
3 – Between 2017 and 2019, Guardiola’s City averaged three changes per league game. By contrast, Arsenal made just 38 changes across the entire 2022–23 season, the fewest in the league.
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After consecutive eighth-place finishes, Arsenal’s revival gathered momentum with the signings of Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko from City. Unlike Pep roulette, Arteta’s side thrived on stability, fielding almost the same XI each week. That cohesion carried us to the top of the league for the best part of eight months.
248 – Arsenal spent a record 248 days leading the Premier League in 2022–23, the most ever by a team that failed to win the title.
The true test came when Saliba’s injury forced Rob Holding into the side, exposing the gulf in quality. The title slipped away, though Champions League qualification – and a return to Europe’s elite – was still secured.
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Arteta’s transfer strategy has often been shaped by the scars of previous seasons. Having led the league for so long only to be overhauled late on, Arsenal responded with a statement summer: breaking the British transfer record for Declan Rice and adding Kai Havertz. These were not depth signings but upgrades to the starting XI.
The effect was immediate: a club-record 91 Premier League goals and 89 points — the second-highest tally in Arsenal history — yet still two points shy of City.
In the post-Christmas run, which carried the title race to the final day, Arteta relied on a tight core. Zinchenko, Kiwior, and Tomiyasu alternated at left-back, while Martinelli, Trossard, and Jesus rotated across the front. Changes were generally confined to one or two positions rather than tailored to specific opponents. The exception came at Anfield, where Arteta started Jorginho to counter Liverpool’s press; he delivered a man-of-the-match performance and was later deployed similarly against City.
7 – Arsenal players started all 18 league games after Christmas (White, Saliba, Gabriel, Rice, Odegaard, Havertz, and Raya – absent only once, ineligible vs. Brentford). Rodri was City’s only ever-present in the same period.
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The following summer brought minimal reinforcement: only Riccardo Calafiori and Mikel Merino arrived, while Fabio Vieira, Smith Rowe, Nelson, and Nketiah departed, deepening concerns over squad depth. A late move for Raheem Sterling seemed low-risk but failed to pay off.
The season quickly unravelled under a wave of injuries. Odegaard struggled to regain rhythm after being rushed back from seven games out. White spent months sidelined, while Saka, Havertz, and Gabriel all required hamstring surgery, and Jesus tore his ACL. Despite refereeing controversies, Arsenal’s campaign was defined more by absences than performances.
1,297 – Arsenal lost 1,297 player-days to injury in the Premier League last season, the 4th-highest total in the division despite also recording the most individual injury incidents (36).
Even the strongest squads would have struggled; Arsenal’s lack of depth left theirs stretched to the limit. Sterling’s struggles forced Arteta to rely on 17-year-old Nwaneri and repurpose Merino up front. Finishing second was less a failure than a minor miracle.
While Arsenal scrambled for solutions, Liverpool’s forwards told their own story: Salah (29 goals), Diaz (13), and Gakpo (10) all reached double figures, with Nunez and Jota adding more – and the league title. Arsenal, by contrast, had no scorer beyond Havertz’s nine.
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That shortfall triggered this summer’s shopping haul. With a new Sporting Director in place, Arsenal have signed seven players, giving Arteta genuine options across every area of the pitch for the first time in his tenure.
Arsenal Squad Depth 2025
But how will Arteta use it?
Jakob Kiwior proved last season that he could step in at centre-back, but by the time opportunities arose, it was too late – Gabriel was pushed through a lingering hamstring issue that ultimately required surgery. Arteta’s reliance on first-choice players was compounded by his players’ insistence on playing whenever possible.
One of Arteta’s biggest criticisms had been his reluctance to trust the wider squad. If a player fell out of favour, there was rarely a path back. But was it truly mistrust — or simply a lack of quality in depth?
Against Leeds last Saturday, Arteta rang the changes. Injuries may have forced his hand, with Odegaard and Saka withdrawn, but around 30 minutes from time, there were debuts for new boy Mosquera and 15-year-old Max Dowman.
With up to 65 matches on the horizon, a stronger squad, and little sign of the injury gods relenting, rotation is no longer a luxury but a necessity. Much of the summer debate has focused on Arsenal’s tactical evolution, but just as crucial will be how Arteta manages minutes.
The squad now appears well-equipped to withstand setbacks. Noni Madueke’s arrival is already making sense: Saka no longer has to play every game, and the drop-off when he is absent is far less stark. Cristhian Mosquera – who logged more minutes than any Valencia player last season — can cover Saliba or Gabriel, or even fill in at right-back. Viktor Gyokeres offers a different profile through the middle. Christian Norgaard provides cover for Zubimendi at the base. Ethan Nwaneri, fresh from a new contract, has already shown he can be trusted with central minutes — easing Odegaard’s load, covering injuries, or even pushing for his place.
Havertz’s injury robs Arsenal of the player who blurred the lines between midfield and attack, but the club moved quickly to land Eberechi Eze from Crystal Palace. Far from a stopgap, Eze has the tools to reshape the side: equally comfortable as a left 8, drifting in from the wing, or operating as a 10 against compact defences. His arrival doesn’t just fill a void – it unlocks new combinations, fresh rhythms, and gives Arteta a dimension this squad has long missed.
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If Arsenal are to compete on all fronts, rotation cannot be an afterthought — it must become a habit. We don’t need Pep’s roulette, but to fully exploit this much-improved squad, we may need our own version: one that protects key players, sustains momentum, exploits opponents, and ensures the team is strongest when it matters most. Judging by the first couple of weeks, injuries will leave us little choice.
The last few seasons have left scars, but they’ve also shaped this squad and its manager. Each setback has forced Arsenal to strengthen, evolve, and prepare for the next step. For the first time under Arteta, the depth is there, the balance is there — and the club is better placed than ever to turn near-misses into silverware.
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