Following the latest reports concerning Mikel Arteta’s plans, we should expect to see a lot of new faces at Arsenal in the coming weeks. Critics have criticised the Spaniard for his rigid line-ups, sometimes sticking with the same players (like Bukayo Saka and William Saliba), and his failure to embrace squad rotation.
It appears that that Arteta has finally realised that ALL players need a rest sometimes, and he has decided that it is time to act on the issue. Paul Hirst of the Sunday Times reports that Arsenal are aiming to add to their two summer signings, David Raya and Riccardo Calafiori, as these are not the only deals to anticipate.
We can expect more signings because Mikel Arteta’s plan is to have more quality players join his squad and to have excellent squad depth, as he is keen on embracing squad rotation, which he can’t do if he doesn’t have options.
Hirst says, “Arsenal’s transfer strategy is pretty simple—provide Arteta with more options. He wants to have a squad that has enough strength in depth to enable him to rotate, which he did not do too often last term.”
The Arsenal manager’s desire to get a large, higher-quality squad is legitimate. Saka, or even Saliba, has featured in over 55 games (for club and country) since the start of last season, and their usage should not be excessive in the upcoming season. Yes, they should continue to contribute significantly to the squad, but their workload must be managed, which can be done if there are enough quality options to allow Arteta to rest them at times, while knowing the job will still be done.
So, after Raya, Calafiori expects additional swoops to go through. Sales of some of the fringe players, Eddie Nketiah, Smith Rowe, and Reiss Nelson, might just go on to enhance Arsenal’s transfer budget to let them navigate the summer market as they like.
We simply must get top players that Arteta will trust to play, just not every week!
Daniel O
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I don’t understand the need this article, simply because Mikel has said the self same thing, as previously reported by JustArsenal.
It’s just plain common sense anyway and I don’t think we need to shower Mikel with accolades of wonder – just get on with it!!
I want us to sign Ruiz. He will be a great addition and playing together with rice will make our team more fluid.
Why not Merino? He’ll be cheaper because of his contract expiration
We’ve got Zinchenko as well
Gai, it doesn’t seem Arteta wants to use Zichenko in midfield he is also a bit light weight we need some steel like combertive former Xhaka. I would prefer Ruiz because Spain boss used him.ahead of Merino, but if Merino is available and cheaper why not..
Yeah but I wish we can see Zinchenko playing there once
Looks like Kiwior is staying, going by Arteta”s words post Calafiori’s signing
Like Ken1945 I think this is a statement of the ******** obvious.
Professional football has been a squad game, rather than a “best XI” game, for many decades now. Long gone are the days when Liverpool, I think, won the league using only 14 players.
It’s easier said than done of course (it usually is) – you need the resources and patience to bring in enough players of the appropriate quality – but it’s not rocket-science, just ask Pep.