Arsenal's pre-season tour of the USA reached its conclusion over the weekend, and it's safe to say it was a successful trip overall.
Three games, three wins - including a dominant performance against Chelsea - made it the perfect 10-day experience for Gunners manager Mikel Arteta: "We had a great time. Thank you so much for everybody that participated in organising this tour," he told reporters when reflecting on the tour.
"We've tried to make it as enjoyable and as productive as possible, and in the sporting side the facilities were really good in both games that we played were really good as well, really competitive matches, great cup, great attendance so looking forward to getting back one day."
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Now back home in the UK, there is one more pre-season fixture pencilled in for the north London outfit - against Sevilla in the Emirates Cup on Saturday - before the big Premier League opener against Crystal Palace a week on Friday, and it's looking like Arsenal will be ready for that trip to Selhurst Park.
Whilst the tour was mainly a positive one as many came away with their reputations enhanced ahead of the 2022/23 campaign, there were a number of players who remained stuck in limbo regarding their futures and others who didn't get a chance to send a message to Arteta.
With that in mind, here are the winners and losers from Arsenal's visit to the USA.
Winners
Gabriel Jesus
Arsenal's big-money summer signing has hit the ground running immediately. Two goals on his unofficial debut against Nurnberg was just a sign of things to come on the USA tour, as he was nothing short of excellent in the games against Everton, Orlando City and Chelsea.
Finding the net in the first and final games of the tour, the Brazilian is looking sharp ahead of the new season, but it wasn't just his goals that caught the eye. He sets the tone with his work rate. He offers an option in behind - something the Gunners sorely lacked last season - and can also drop deep to link the play.
Of course, it's still early days, but already it feels like Gabriel Jesus has transformed the Arsenal attack, and it would appear that Arteta has signed the perfect striker for his system.
William Saliba
In Arteta's own words, the 21-year-old looks ready to play in the Premier League. After three loan spells since joining the club in the summer of 2019, there has always been an intrigue regarding William Saliba's situation, and he was arguably the one player outside of Gabriel Jesus that fans were keen to get a closer look at during the tour.
So many questions were being asked. From 'will he get an opportunity?' 'how will he fare against Premier League opposition?' to 'does Arteta like him?' It's safe to say fans got their answers. Featuring and impressing in all three games, Saliba showed real moments of quality against Everton and Chelsea, in particular, to indicate he is ready for the next step.
And all signs are pointing toward him being involved in the opener against Crystal Palace, which makes the USA tour a successful one for Saliba. The icing on the cake will be an official announcement regarding a new contract in the coming weeks.
Reuell Walters
As the sole representative from the academy, just being named in the 33-man tour squad (which later increased by one with the signing of Oleksandr Zinchenko) meant the young defender was immediately a winner as this experience will benefit him greatly in years to come.
Aside from being partially humiliated by Martin Odegaard's outrageous piece of skill in one of the early training sessions, the teenager will have relished being part of a second overseas pre-season tour in a matter of weeks, and hopefully, he will experience more.
Against Nurnberg, he operated at centre-back and returned to his more familiar full-back role in a substitute appearance against Everton. Certainly, one for the future and perhaps his inclusion indicates some more first-team opportunities when the season gets underway.
Honourable mentions: Thomas Partey showed how crucial he will be in midfield, and Albert Sambi Lokonga raised the prospect of saving Arsenal millions of pounds this summer. Eddie Nketiah, despite only scoring once on tour, has added a few strings to his bow ahead of the new season.
Losers
Charlie Patino
This is not a slight on the Arsenal wonderkid as he isn't a loser, but he did lose out by not being named in the tour squad, which is no fault of his own and actually shone a light on Arteta's decision-making as bringing as many as five goalkeepers but not one or two more youngsters was quite bizarre.
In fact, after Charlie Patino impressed against Nurnberg as a substitute, it was a major shock that he wasn't part of the travelling party to the USA, especially when taking into consideration that there is an opening in central midfield, and this would have been his chance to stake a claim.
However, the teenager remained in the UK, and with the Gunners being linked with the likes of Youri Tielemans and Lucas Paqueta, this feels like a big opportunity missed for the midfielder and creates doubts with regard to his chances of first-team involvement next season.
Lucas Torreira
Hindsight is a wonderful thing. But what was the point of Lucas Torreria being named in the tour squad? He didn't play with Partey, Mohamed Elneny, Lokonga, and Ainsley Maitland-Niles all ahead of him in the pecking order. It poses the question as to if he was ever going to get minutes.
Furthermore, he reportedly left the training camp in between the Orlando City and Chelsea games, adding fuel to the fire that he will be leaving the club permanently before the summer transfer window closes. Therefore, it's safe to say his seat on the plane would have been better off going to Patino - a player who is assured to be at the club next season.
Considering Torreira has publically stated he has no intention to be an Arsenal player for much longer, the whole trip turned out to be somewhat of a waste of time for all parties involved as the club didn't increase his valuation, and the midfielder missed out.
Emile Smith Rowe
Fitness issues meant Kieran Tierney, Fabio Vieira and Takehiro Tomiyasu didn't play a single minute of the USA tour. Thanks to the form of Saliba, the signing of Zinchenko and midfield depth, Arsenal are in a position where they do not have to rush the trio back for the game against Crystal Palace.
But in Emile Smith Rowe's case, he didn't get the opportunity to lay down a marker for a starting role in the Premier League opener. Considering how last season ended, the Gunners no.10 is behind Gabriel Martinelli on the left-hand side of the attack, although a change of position was hinted at against Nurnberg.
As pointed out by fans on social media, Smith Rowe's fitness issues are becoming a major concern and with Arsenal tipped to bring in another wide player and central midfielder before the transfer window closes. The 21-year-old may have his work cut out to fulfil his enormous potential if he can't stay fit.
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