Less than two years ago, Arsenal appeared in complete disarray under manager Mikel Arteta and their sorry state sparked quite the rant from pundit Micah Richards.
Fresh off the back of announcing the signings of Martin Odegaard, Aaron Ramsdale and Ben White, ex- Manchester City ace Richards felt that the Gunners no longer had the ability to attract the big names and were missing out on top-tier talent who would sooner join another club.
"At this moment, Arsenal can't attract the top, top players, because players want to go to the better performing teams at this moment in time," he told BBC 5Live. "When you say they've spent a lot of money, they're buying second-tier players, or players with good potential who could become that.
"You should think that the manager's got some input in the players that they're getting. But I just think with Arsenal now, they've got themselves in such a rut, they've done a couple of panic buys."
Fast forward to the summer of 2023 and Richards' remarks feel a world away from the reality at the Emirates nowadays. With morale high after a second-placed finish and return to the Champions League, the Gunners have set their sights on some high-profile targets.
The main one of course being West Ham United captain Declan Rice. Arsenal's pursuit of the England international is by now well-documented, with Arteta rumoured to be willing to fork out just north of £100m for the 24-year-old midfielder.
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Should Arsenal land the signing as it looks like they will, they'll have fended off the likes of City, Manchester United and Bayern Munich.
It is a similar story for Kai Havertz, who the Gunners are also thought to be close to enticing to the Emirates after an underwhelming three years at Chelsea.
Much like Rice, the Germany international was high on the transfer wish-list of Bayern Munich but Havertz has since reportedly already made clear to both his representatives and those at the top of the Stamford Bridge hierarchy he has no intention of extending his Chelsea stay and wants the move to Arsenal.
Romeo Lavia may not be quite as big a name as Rice or Havertz, but the 19-year-old is just as in-demand, with both Chelsea and United touted as a potential destinations for the Southampton star.
Regarded as too good to play in the Championship, recent speculation has suggested Arsenal are the club most likely to land Lavia's signature, beating some of the aforementioned big-six rivals to the punch in the process.
Despite Richards' past claim, it would appear that Arteta's Arsenal actually do have the ability to get the better of their enemies in the transfer window.
