The opening of the January transfer window is right around the corner and the big question is, will it be a busy one for Arsenal?
If last summer's business is any indication then the answer is yes as the north London outfit were one of the more active teams across the entire Premier League, signing no less than five players in Marquinhos, Fabio Vieira, Matt Turner, Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko.
In total, those deals cost Arsenal in the region of £120million and it's safe to say all five additions have played a key role in ensuring Mikel Arteta's side will head into the new year as genuine Premier League title contenders and safely into the Europa League round of 16 stage.
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With that said, one or two astute signings in January just might give the Gunners outfit the advantage over Manchester City in the race to be crowned 2022/23 Premier League champions and when speaking earlier in the week, Arteta did admit that the club will be alert to any situation that can benefit the squad.
"We are going to be active and active means we are looking to strengthen the team," he revealed. "This squad still doesn’t have the luxury of not maximising every single window. We have to do that because it’s really important. But then we have to get the right profile, it has to be the right player to take us to the next level."
So, Arsenal fans brace yourself for another busy transfer window as we take you through what would be the best and worst-case scenario in January.
Best case
Arteta and Edu know the blueprint for a successful transfer window as their plan for the summer was to bring in a replacement for the outgoing Bernd Leno, a left-back to compete with Kieran Tierney, at least one new midfielder and a centre-forward with Alexandre Lacazette departing for Lyon.
In signing Turner, Zinchenko, Fabio Vieira and Gabriel Jesus before the first Premier League game of the season, let alone deadline day, they had completed their mission nice and early, and the signing of Brazilian youngster Marquinhos was effectively a bonus deal with little to no expectations from him.
As a result, Arteta and Edu spent the remainder of the window hoping to get one more player through the door before the window slammed shut. For one reason or another, there weren't to be any more additions despite strong links with Pedro Neto and Douglas Luiz.
But looking ahead to next month, fans are likely going to be asking for 'more of the same' from the Arsenal pair and football.london understands signing a wide forward as well as a central midfielder is their priority. With that said, there are two potential signings that would delight many.
Jesus' injury means Arteta won't be able to name his strongest XI for a while and it leaves the Gunners short of options across the forward line. Shakhtar Donetsk winger Mykhaylo Mudryk is said to be the main target, with 11 goals and eight assists in 19 appearances across all competitions so far this season he would be an ideal signing.
Although, links to Atletico Madrid forward Joao Felix have resurfaced this week as reports claim he could be available for as little as £8m in a loan deal. Since 2020, Arsenal have generally shopped in the loan market during a winter window, so perhaps history will repeat itself.
In addition, there could be a chance for Arteta to bolster his central midfield options and provide cover for Thomas Partey. Youri Tielemans remains a target - though the club would prefer a free transfer - whilst Argentina's World Cup-winning pair Alexis Mac Allister and Enzo Fernandez have been linked recently. A deal for any one of the trio would be a signal of intent from the north London outfit.
Two incomings plus trimming the squad slightly would represent a good January window for the Gunners as Cedric Soares has not been in favour this season and can be sold to Fulham, for example, to raise some cash. Meanwhile, sealing a loan deal for Marquinhos is essential for his development.
Worst case
As things stand, if none of the above happens and Arsenal don't get any business done in the January transfer window, it's likely to be seen as an opportunity missed. But arguably the worst-case scenario would be if the Gunners were to repeat a mistake from 12 months ago.
Of course, signing players in January can be hit-and-miss for all clubs and Arsenal have had their fair share of misses in recent years. Not all can have an immediate impact like Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang or Nacho Monreal, but the less said about Kim Kallstrom and Denis Suarez the better.
With that said, the club's decision to not sign a replacement for Aubameyang or bring in midfield reinforcements during the 2022 January transfer window amid links to Dusan Vlahovic, Alexander Isak and Bruno Guimaraes ultimately backfired as a lack of goals and the absence of Partey saw was a reason for no top-four finish.
It's clear there's room for the Gunners to improve and fans will discover just how serious the club is about winning the Premier League title with their actions in January. Not signing at least one player means Arsenal risk undoing a lot of the good work from the past two summers and the first half of this season.
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