Mikel Arteta's side have finished as Premier League runners-up for three seasons running and they cannot afford to fall short again next term
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By the end of 2024-25, Arsenal supporters must have grown sick to the back teeth of that same old ditty. Fans of teams far, far below their position in the Premier League table were rocking up to the Emirates Stadium and singing 'second again, ole ole'. Indeed, the Gunners were on their way to another second-place finish, tying the record they themselves set in the days of Arsene Wenger for most consecutive runners-up placements in English top-flight history.
We can throw all of the valid excuses out there to defend Arsenal's campaign, be they injury-related or otherwise, but ultimately history will deem last season as a failure. Mikel Arteta recognised that in a vengeful and aggressive speech after their last home game, while he also made reference to transfer plans after their Champions League elimination at the hands of Paris Saint-Germain.
"For me it's crystal clear what we have to do, to be better and to increase the probability [of winning]," he said. "Nobody can say 'you do this and you win the league, or you win the Champions League'. No manager, no owner is going to sit in a press conference in front of everybody and say that, because the margin is so small, and not only that but a lot of things have to go your way to achieve that."
So what do Arsenal need to actually do? What are the tasks awaiting new sporting director Andrea Berta? GOAL breaks down who should come in, who should leave and more…
Follow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱Getty Images SportDon't let Zubimendi get away
We have to start with Arsenal's pursuit of Real Sociedad midfielder Martin Zubimendi. If you have any Gunners fans in your life, then you will have noticed how their stress levels have been increasing over the status of a deal which was supposedly one step from completion, only for the Spain international to act coy when quizzed on it this week.
"Of course there are options, but it's true that it seems like it's going to be a different, long summer, and I don't know how it will end," he told on Tuesday. "I don't think thinking about that right now is my priority. I'm here with the national team, which I think is already quite demanding, and if I have to say something, then I will."
Now, despite this cryptic admission, reports coming from both Spain and England insist the deal is not in jeopardy, despite the possibility of Real Madrid – now managed by Zubimendi's idol and former coach, Xabi Alonso – hanging over negotiations. Still, it would be best for Arsenal to wrap this up sooner rather than later.
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Zubimendi is expected to serve as Arsenal's long-term replacement for Jorginho, who will return to Brazil with Flamengo on a free transfer, as a metronomic midfielder. It's often forgotten how important the Italian playmaker was in Arteta's system during the second half of 2023-24 when they ripped off a run of 16 wins from 18 league games, and so it makes sense to bring in a successor of the same archetype to freshen up the squad again.
Elsewhere, Arsenal are reportedly in talks with Leandro Trossard over a lengthy contract extension, which boggles the mind for several reasons. Though he is one of the squad's most reliable fitness bets, featuring in all 38 Premier League games last season as part of 56 in total, there were notable signs of struggle when it came to replicating his scintillating form of his first 18 months in N5, and with 12 months left on his deal, now is the perfect time to cash in or decide this will be the last dance in a reduced role. Ultimately, if Arsenal are relying on Trossard to play 56 times again in 2025-26, it is unlikely they will lift the Premier League trophy come May.
The same can be said of 52-appearance Thomas Partey, whose contract expires at the end of the month after his 32nd birthday and has been linked with a move back to Spain with Barcelona, despite Arteta admitting he would like to keep the midfielder. Whether the Ghanaian stays or goes, he is entering a different stage of his career and can't be relied upon in the same way either.
Arsenal are in a tricky position with their squad in general because Arteta admitted it needed streamlining last summer, though the flip-side meant they were unnecessarily stretched when it came to battling injuries, and you can't rule out that increasing that workload contributed to the crisis. Regardless, fresh legs and impetus are needed to get up and go again.
Getty Images SportFind a dynamic winger
Arsenal simply can't go into another season with Trossard and Gabriel Martinelli as their two main options on the left wing. They just can't. Both are fine players in their own right with differing skillsets, but this is one of two positions the club must strengthen in if they are serious about winning a major trophy.
In the case of Martinelli, he hasn't kicked on as hoped after such an impressive 2022-23 campaign in which he flew past full-backs with ease and scored 15 Premier League goals as part of a fluid, break-neck speed attack. His limitations on the ball have been easy for defenders to suss out since. This isn't to say Martinelli should be sold, rather that his minutes should be reduced to make him more of an impact substitute.
Athletic Club's Nico Williams has long been said to be one of the Gunners' dream targets for the role, though his sky-high wage demands in excess of £200,000-a-week and talks over a new deal in the Basque Country will make this extremely difficult to pull off. Arteta and Co will need to cast their net wider to find a suitable alternative.
The German media claim Arteta is interested in a reunion with Leroy Sane, whom he worked with at Manchester City and could yet leave Bayern Munich as a free agent later this month. That would prove quite the market opportunity, yet not quite the marquee signing the club should be looking at. If Rodrygo is granted permission to pursue an exit from Real Madrid this summer, then that's the sort of deal Arsenal should be all over, while it may also be worth knocking on Bradley Barcola's door after losing his starting spot at PSG to Desire Doue.
AFPPrioritise Gyokeres over Sesko
If you were to survey Arsenal fans over what position they need most in the summer window, roughly 99.9 percent would respond with 'striker'. The club have made only two purchases in that area in the post-Wenger era, with Gabriel Jesus and Kai Havertz the chosen duo. Even then, Havertz was signed as a midfielder, as the Gunners aggressively told the world upon his arrival in 2023.
In fairness, Jesus played like a man possessed during his first six months in north London, and the pivot from his fluidity to Havertz's rigid style has certainly contributed to Arsenal becoming far less entertaining to watch. Forwards with the Brazilian's pre-injury skillset are hard to find, and it's probably why their top two targets this summer more so resemble a traditional No.9.
It has been widely reported that RB Leipzig's Benjamin Sesko and Sporting CP's Viktor Gyokeres are now leading the Gunners' shortlist of marksmen. Sesko appears to have the edge in the race, yet it's the Swede who ought to instead.
A package for Gyokeres would not only prove cheaper, with Sporting lowering their demands to around £60m compared to the £92m Leipzig want for their Slovenian hitman, but he is in the prime of his career and would help Arsenal compete for honours right away. Concerns over the standard of the Portuguese top-flight are valid – especially considering how eerily similar Gyokeres' impact was to Darwin Nunez's when he was at Benfica – though his excellent record in Europe, with the Swedish national team and a previous stint in a once competitive Championship at Coventry City should alleviate fears. The eye test also suggests Gyokeres is nowhere near as erratic a finisher as Liverpool's Uruguayan.
This isn't a slight on Sesko, who will almost certainly grow into one of the world's leading strikers by the end of the decade, but he is far rawer a prospect and project when what the Gunners need is immediate impact. If Arsenal were to sign two centre-forwards, one for the immediate present and one for the long run, then it would relieve some of the pressure Sesko would have to overcome, though that's an extremely unlikely scenario.
