Mikel Arteta and the Arsenal squad are gearing up for what should be an extremely beneficial pre-season tour in the United States of America.
The Gunners' preparations for the 2022/23 campaign could not have gone any better in terms of results - which isn't of too much importance - as they put five past Ipswich Town in a training match at London Colney and did the same against FC Nurnberg last week as part of a training camp in Germany.
Furthermore, Mikel Arteta has been able to get a look at three of his Arsenal summer signings. Gabriel Jesus was the standout player on his non-competitive debut as he netted twice and gave supporters a glimpse of what a strike partnership with Eddie Nketiah could look like next season.
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Prior to flying out to the USA, the Spaniard was handed a major boost with the likes of Martin Odegaard, Bukayo Saka, William Saliba, Aaron Ramsdale and Takehiro Tomiyasu, all reporting for pre-season training after being afforded extra time off due to their international duty exploits last month.
As a result, Arteta will be able to name an extremely strong touring squad that features a mix of senior and academy players as preparations for the new season go up a notch with friendlies against Everton, Orlando City, and Chelsea pencilled in over the next week and a half.
But what would represent the ideal USA pre-season tour for the north London outfit? With the transfer window still open, players need minutes to build up their fitness and a trophy to win, football.london takes a closer look at what would represent the best trip for the side.
Fabio Vieira debut
As mentioned above, three of Arsenal's summer signings so far made their debuts against FC Nurnberg. Matt Turner started in goal - though he would have been disappointed with the concession of the home side's first goal - whilst Gabriel Jesus and Marquinhos came on in the second half.
But looking on from the stands was the Gunners' other recruit, Fabio Vieira. Now the good news is that the Portugal U21 international - signed for £30m from Porto - is no longer in a protective boot amid fears he joined the club already injured so it may just be a matter of time before he makes his non-competitive debut.
There is a lot of excitement regarding Fabio Vieira's arrival, yet there are so many questions to be answered. Will he be Odegaard's back-up? Has he been signed to play alongside the Norway international in midfield? Can he operate on the right-wing when Saka needs a breather? It's possible this tour will provide some answers.
New signings
Speaking of new signings, Arsenal aren't done in the transfer market. Amid strong links to the likes of Lucas Paqueta, Alex Grimaldo, and Youri Tielemans, just to name a few, Arteta has revealed the plan is to strengthen his squad where possible: "We never talk about players that are not ours," he said. "We can still improve the team in the market, and we're going to try to do it, but I won't go into any specific names."
Of course, there may not be any further new signings on the plane that flies out to the USA. However, that doesn't necessarily rule out the prospect of Gunners completing a transfer or two, and the new signing(s) - as long as they can show proof of being fully vaccinated against COVID-19 before travelling - joins up after the squad touches down in America.
With games against Everton on July 17, Orlando City three days later and then Chelsea a week on Sunday. There is plenty of time for the Gunners to get a deal done for either Paqueta or Tielemans, for example, and have them feature in at least one of the three pre-season friendlies.
Players grab their second chance
The likes of Pablo Mari, Hector Bellerin, Ainsley Maitland-Niles, Nicolas Pepe and Reiss Nelson are seemingly not in Arteta's long-term plans. They are apparently in the departure lounge waiting to head off and join a new club before the summer transfer window closes.
With that said, they could all be in another departure lounge in the coming hours. The one heading to the USA for Arsenal's pre-season tour as Arteta has refused to close the door on their careers in north London: "What I said to them on the first day is that they are Arsenal players," the Spaniard said.
"Things change dramatically in football from one day to another, and you have to be prepared for that. If any of those players want to take the opportunity, the door is open, and they will have to earn it. It's no different to any other player in the squad."
Whilst selling all five would bring in some cash to boost Arteta's transfer budgets, by the sounds of it, the USA pre-season tour could hand some a chance to save their respective Arsenal careers and, in turn, allow the club to save millions of pounds this summer.
Odegaard named captain
It has been widely reported that Odegaard will be named the next permanent Arsenal captain following Arteta's decision to take the armband away from Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang last season. After Alexandre Lacazette's departure when his contract expired last month.
There have been a few contenders to challenge Odegaard for the role, with Kieran Tierney an obvious option, Ramsdale recently threw his name into the ring, 'natural leader' Saliba has his pros, whilst Lacazette has tipped Gabriel Magalhaes, Benjamin White and Albert Sambi Lokonga for the role.
But it would appear that after skippering the side during the final eight games of the season - including against the likes of Chelsea, Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur - Odegaard is about to get the armband permanently and before the pre-season tour gets underway, would be the ideal time to announce this decision just to end any uncertainty.
No injuries
The most obvious one. When Tierney was withdrawn after 30 minutes against FC Nurnberg last week, there was a state of concern and worry amongst many Arsenal supporters on social media. As it turned out, those fears were eased, with Arteta confirming the change was pre-planned as he looks to manage the Scot's fitness carefully after such a long time on the sidelines.
The last thing the Arsenal manager will want is to go into the new season with his side not completely ready for the opener against Crystal Palace on August 5, so coming through the trip to the USA with his squad unscathed is, unsurprisingly, the ideal scenario.
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