Another August brings the commencement of another Premier League, the de-facto center of the club soccer world. Among the plethora of storylines to follow this season is, per usual in recent years, whether the Arsenal men’s team can actually win a major trophy this year.
While most of the talking points are similar to that of Arsenal seasons past, there are a select few differences that shift the tone when entering the season. A combination of aggressive signings and a new keen sporting director point to this year being make or break. In other words, if Arsenal don’t win a major trophy, the season can be deemed a categorical failure.
Fresh Faces
In November 2024, Edu Gaspar stepped down as Arsenal’s sporting director to join Nottingham Forrest’s front office. Edu played an integral part in the Mikel Arteta project, though the recent struggles to raise the overall quality of the squad meant it was time for a new perspective.
After a few months’ search, Arsenal announced Andrea Berta as the new sporting director in March of this year. Berta got his administrative start in his home country of Italy, though is most known for his 12 year stint in the technical office of Atletico Madrid.
Berta has already made his mark at the club, doing what the past sporting directors refused to: signing a striker. Arsenal’s marquee signing from the summer transfer window was Swedish striker Viktor Gyökeres. After bursting onto the scene in the last two seasons with Sporting Lisbon, Gyökeres was the hottest striker on the market coming into this transfer window. In previous years, Arsenal would’ve passed for a cheaper, less refined option, which they almost did with Benjamin Sesko. But with new vision comes new moves, and landing Gyökeres was the big one.
While the striker gets the headlines, Arsenal made some other big signings to bolster the squad. Martín Zubimendi, an immensely talented defensive midfielder, joined from Real Sociedad. Cristhian Mosquera, a young center back prospect, signed over from Valencia. Plus, since it seems like tradition now, Arsenal signed another Chelsea player in Noni Madueke.
Most recently, however, Arsenal flipped yet another script by signing Eberechi Eze from right under rivals Tottenham’s nose. Arsenal flirted with Eze throughout the summer, though seemed to cool off the chase once the season picked up. However, merely days after reports suggested Tottenham agreed to terms with Eze and Crystal Palace, Arsenal swooped in, which they’ve fallen victim to many times before.
The slate of serious signings shows a clear change in Arsenal’s approach, which in turn is lifting expectations even higher.
It’s Now or Never (Kinda)
Berta’s work so far shows an intention to shift the club’s mindset from the top down. And in all fairness, we’ve already seen some change.
Arsenal opened their Premier League season by squeaking out a 1-0 win at Manchester United in a game where the Gunners were outplayed for most of the time. While it’s a one off occasion, this is a situation where Arsenal previously struggled to maximize points, something that champions tend to do.
Gyökeres and Madueke were fairly quiet in their appearances, though Zubimendi had a strong showing. It wasn’t extravagant by any means, but it showed that making investments to fill the holes in your squad works.
Gyökeres represents the most glaring issue. Arsenal have been in desperate need of a striker since Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s departure in 2022. While a few squad players have been decent in stepping up from time to time, Gyökeres provides a new dimension to Arsenal’s attack that, when figured out, will be extremely dangerous.
Zubimendi will likely become the most impactful signing, through both his direct contribution as well as the freedom he gives others. Arsenal’s midfield is loaded already with Declan Rice, Martin Odegaard, and Mikel Merino. A player of Zubimendi’s quality to step in and happily take on the defensive duties gives those players more freedom, energy, and space to create the attack. All three have shown what they can do in front of goal when given the chance, and Zubimendi can help give them more chances.
Eze brings an individual skillset that can flip a match in an instant. While fans have called for reinforcements in the left wing position, Eze’s involvement may change the system altogether. There have been countless times where Arsenal dominate possession, but spend 70 minutes passing the ball from side-to-side before scuffing a half-hearted shot and looking at each other depressed. Eze is the type of player that can pick up the ball in those situations and immediately change the energy.
Madueke and Mosquera provide some much needed depth to the squad. Madueke’s signing brought out some awful, unfair criticism from fans unhappy with the move. But he was a big part of an over achieving Chelsea squad last season and could raise the competition on the wing that fans are so desperate to fix. Meanwhile, Mosquera comes in as a bright young talent that could be ushered into an already strong Arsenal defense, especially with William Saliba rumored to be a target across Europe.
In a perfect world, Arsenal are set up to win a lot. It’s more than likely that they’ll end up winning something.
But they absolutely cannot end this season empty-handed. An FA or EFL Cup run would be lukewarm at best, but the real expectations lie in the Premier League and the Champions League.
Sure, there’s time needed to build chemistry and cohesion. That was apparent in the win over United. However, the pieces are in place, and the project is as close to complete as it’s ever been.
The old injury bug has already reared its ugly head, with Kai Haverts out indefinitely with a knee injury. That being said, the injury did spur the Eze signing, and that is a move that the Arsenal of the last five years wouldn’t dream of doing.
Outside of a massive injury crisis, there are no more excuses for Arsenal. They are signing the players, they are being proactive, and they are already winning important games even when they don’t play well. If they can’t do it this season, it’s hard to see what it would take in order for them to do it.
