The tumultuous end to the 2018-19 campaign
Following the departure of Arsene Wenger at the end of the 2017-18 campaign, it was never going to be easy for anyone to fill the Frenchman’s boots.
Wenger was unarguably the architect of growth of the north London outfit and his illustrious spell of twenty-two years at the club is unlikely to be matched by anyone in the future.
Arsenal stepped into a transitional phase last season under the tutelage of Unai Emery and got off to a bright start after an initial hiccup against champions Manchester City. At one point, bagging a top-four finish seemed like a mere formality.
However, their familiar pattern of inconsistency during the business end of the season continued and all they could achieve at the end was a Europa League berth.
The current scenario
Fast forward a few months, the Gunners already look like a lot better side as the club’s hierarchy broke the bank to make some fantastic additions to Emery’s artillery.
Initially, it was believed that the former Paris Saint-Germain manager had a meagre budget of £45m to make new additions but it turned out to be mostly a smokescreen tactic.
Brazilian sensation Gabriel Martinelli was first lured to the Emirates and he has already impressed in attack during the pre-season.
Further, Dani Cabellos has been brought on loan from Real Madrid to fill the void left behind by Aaron Ramsey.
Arsenal have put trust on William Saliba by signing him for £27million and even though he will be joining the team in a year’s time, he is expected to be the future of the Gunners’ backline.
Notably, the north London based outfit then smashed their transfer record as they signed right-winger Nicolas Pepe from Lille for a fee of £72million.
Their defence, meanwhile, is far from being sorted. Emery is unlikely to sign a new custodian and is backing Matt Macey and Emiliano Martinez to be the deputies to Bernd Leno.
Moreover, Laurent Koscielny has moved to Bordeaux, which implies that Arsenal must attempt to sign a proven centre-back before the transfer window shuts down tomorrow.
Intriguingly, Arsenal have been linked with Kieran Tierney, Daniele Rugani and Dayot Upamecano and it is to be seen if they can manage to sign any of them in the coming hours.
Like every other season in recent memory, Arsenal are seemingly likely to head into a new campaign with a worrisome backline once again and they might have to pay the price eventually if they do nothing about it.
Who will be their key players?
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette formed a lethal partnership in attack and there is no denying that the duo will once again play a pivotal role for the club.
While Pepe has to live up to his hefty price tag, former German international Mesut Ozil needs to rediscover his touch and make his presence felt on the pitch regularly.
At the back, Sokratis will undoubtedly have to offer his leadership and defensive expertise and Rob Holding could be chalked alongside him regularly in central defence unless Emery manages to crack a deal for one of the aforementioned players.
What to expect from Arsenal?
Apart from their performance in the final of last season’s Europa League where they were battered by Chelsea, Arsenal were convincing enough in the second-tier competition.
They will look to end their European woes once again and with the offensive firepower they have, it wouldn’t be surprising to see them clinch the Europa League title.
If Emery somehow finds a solution to his defence before the transfer window shuts down, there is every reason to expect Arsenal to make a strong case for the top 4 by the time the season wraps up next May.
