Arsenal have enjoyed plenty of progression as a team under Mikel Arteta's management - helped by some brilliant business in the transfer market from sporting director Edu Gaspar. The Gunners came close to ending their wait for a first Premier League title since 2004 last season as they finished second - behind Manchester City.
It's been quite the turnaround at Arsenal since Arteta returned to the Emirates Stadium in a managerial role with Champions League football set to return next season. Bukayo Saka has become one of the Gunners' star players and recently signed a new long-term contract with his boyhood club.
The signings of Aaron Ramsdale, Martin Odegaard, Gabriel Magalhaes, Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko have all helped propel Arsenal back towards the top of the Premier League and emerge as one of City's main competitors for the title. Kai Havertz has become the first addition to Arteta's squad this summer with Declan Rice and Jurrien Timber expected to complete their moves to Arsenal in the coming days.
All three players would take the Gunners' spending to over £200million already this summer with a versatile forward and another midfielder reportedly on the club's agenda before next season. Arsenal's squad when Arteta took over as manager back in 2019 was valued at £496million - with many of the players now having moved on after four years.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Alexandre Lacazette, Mesut Ozil, Henrikh Mykhitaryan and others have all departed for new challenges. Only Gabriel Martinelli, Saka, Kieran Tierney, Reiss Nelson, Rob Holding, Nicolas Pepe, Cedric Soares and Emile Smith Rowe remain in the squad when compared to the team Arteta inherited.
Cedric and Pepe are expected to be sold this summer whilst the future of Holding and Tierney at the club is also uncertain. Now, the Gunners have a squad value over €1billion (£854m), according to Transfermarkt.
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This is a testament to the work of Arteta and Edu to help develop existing players' ability and bring in world-class players to help continue the progress of the team. Rice and Timber arriving at the club will only increase the value of Arteta's squad - with the Spaniard hoping to add more talented players ahead of next season.
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