Arsenal’s January transfer window was a tale of frustration and, ultimately, the failure to strengthen the squad will ramp up the pressure to spend in the summer.
Mikel Arteta was bullish throughout last month about the need for Arsenal to “maximise every window” and, while that may have been the case with outgoings, it wasn’t so with incomings.
Arsenal’s only signing was Colorado Rapids defender Auston Trusty and he has been loaned back to the MLS side until the summer, when he will then be sent to a club in Europe to gain yet more experience.
A deal for goalkeeper Matt Turner to join in the summer from New England Revolution was also agreed, but that too was hardly the acquisition Arsenal fans hoped to see.
Arsenal went into the window looking to sign a midfielder and a striker, and they ultimately left empty-handed.
The lack of a new midfield arrival feels less damaging, particularly as Arsenal have one game a week and Thomas Partey is back from the Africa Cup of Nations with Mohamed Elneny soon to return. Granit Xhaka’s suspension is also over and the selection crisis that dogged January should be a thing of the past.
Arsenal worked on a deal to loan Juventus’ Arthur, but that broke down as Juventus wanted an 18-month deal instead of one until the end of the season. In the end, the Gunners walked away and the midfield will be addressed in the summer.
The attack will have to be sorted then too and the fear is how Arsenal cope until then. Allowing Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to leave will save a huge amount on wages, around £20million, but it leaves the squad looking desperately short up top.
Alexandre Lacazette and Eddie Nketiah are now the only out-and-out strikers on Arsenal’s books and, even with only one game a week, that looks short on firepower to mount a serious challenge for Champions League qualification.
Time will tell if that belief is right or not, but Arsenal’s window has at least put them on a good footing for the summer. Aubameyang’s wages are off the books and, with Lacazette joining him too at the end of the season, Arsenal should have greater financial flexibility.
That should come in handy given Arsenal will need to sign at least two strikers. Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli are likely due new deals soon, given their fine form, and space has been cleared on the wage bill for that as well.
The pressure, however, is very much on this summer for Arsenal to deliver after a quiet January. They did well in getting players out the door, but for the project to continue progressing reinforcements are needed.
All eyes will be on Arsenal this summer.
