Arsenal are literally flying in the Premier League race, a magical season for Mikel Arteta and his players after so many difficult years.
A project that starts from afar and in which it is important to give credits to the Brazilian club's director Edu Gaspar: in the summer of 2021 Arsenal's situation was almost critical, many asked for Mikel Arteta to be sacked but the club defended him with conviction despite a very difficult moment.
In particular, Edu has always supported the manager even in discussions with the club board and from that moment Arsenal have managed to consolidate on and off the pitch: a perfect mix that has led to excellent results this season 2022/2023, waiting for to understand if the Gunners will be able to realize the dream of winning the Premier League in a still difficult and long race with Pep Guardiola's Manchester City.
But what are the next steps of the Arsenal project?
Investments have always made sense from season to season: in 2021 there was a revolution with many new arrivals and many unpopular changes, in 2022 this work was completed with quality additions and a top signing like Gabriel Jesus who Arsenal considers a proper top player for present and future.
But as early as 2021, the club's ideas had been to bring Arsenal to a completion of the basic squad within 2/3 years to which they could add two or three top quality players, no longer six or seven new signings in one summer transfer window only.
That's why quality signings can be expected from Arsenal next summer, with important investments that can really come as long as the right opportunity is found on the market.
The example of their market approach is from... 14 months ago: Arsenal wanted Dusan Vlahovic in January 2022 and were ready to invest up to €60/65m, but the deal could not proceed because Vlahovic only wanted Juventus at that moment in his career.
The Gunners' strategy was smart and forward-looking: don't panic, don't invest in other players you didn't believe in 100%, save the money and invest directly in summer 2022 in Gabriel Jesus as a top target rather than wasting money just because the fans expected a new striker in January.
In view of July and August 2023, the example of the Mykhaylo Mudryk deal will also be useful: Arsenal wanted him as their top target but weren't ready to pay the €100m guaranteed fee, it could reach around €80m with add-ons but those those were the conditions... and so Chelsea increased the offer and surpassed the Gunners.
They were disappointed, but immediately found a solution in Leandro Trossard on a smart and fast deal.
Arsenal have a different vision: each target is worth a specific amount, there will be no crazy signings but important investments are ready if the right players are found at the right conditions, above all provided that the player is 100% convinced of Arsenal and he doesn't want other destinations as happened to Vlahovic, Manuel Locatelli or even Lisandro Martinez who was on the Gunners list a year ago and chose Manchester United.
Arsenal are ready for major investments also thanks to their return to the Champions League, but the right conditions must exist.
In which positions? Now the club is silent, cautious, focused on the new contracts of Bukayo Saka (to be signed soon), William Saliba (talks are ongoing) and later also Ramsdale and Xhaka. Arsenal want to isolate the squad for the Premier League dream and avoid distractions.
But a new midfielder and a new winger are two possibilities that Arsenal will explore in the summer, perhaps not the only ones; keep an eye also on the fullback situation. But right now, the focus is only on the Premier League.
