Rating Arteta’s signings
There has been criticism in regards to transfers of the Arteta/Edu regime, and much of it over the top in my opinion. I would like to explore this topic in more detail, with this article focusing mainly on permanent signings.
Reviewing anything in life needs context. So before we look at the players, and Arteta, there are a number of caveats affecting this assessment that need acknowledging.
1 – Inheriting a bloated, overpaid, underskilled squad. Removing the mass of deadwood has had a direct impact on new signings, and when they could be signed. Selling average players on huge wages is almost an impossible task at the best of times, let alone adding financially crippling government restrictions in the mix over the last two years.
2 – ALL clubs/managers sign duds! Find me a club that doesn’t, you can’t!
3 – We can’t properly judge brand new signings for at least a year down the line, and even then, how often has that new signing been playing? And one cannot definitively judge a player until their time has finished at their respective club.
4 – Value for money? Did we spend too much, or find a gem at a knockdown price? A player may flop, but if they came on a free, it’s not as bad as it could have been.
5 – One of the most important factors when reviewing a signing, is the “why?”. Irrespective of talent, did we need to sign a specific player? Instead of looking at what the team actually needs, too often players are signed because the manager fancies them, or the agent is friends with someone at that specific club. Arsenal example – Entire budget was blown on Ozil, when we already had around 5 or 6 attacking midfielders on our books, including the great Santi, and were desperate for a DM and CF at the time. But Wenger always liked him, so that was that.
6 – From all the information I have read about Arteta, he seems to have a big say on who we sign, but one should remember that some managers do not get much say to who is signed.
7 – Was the player signed as potential or to deliver from day one?
Now, onto the permanent signings under Arteta. All prices are in Euros, and ratings out of ten (most of these signings are fairly new, but I wanted to rate them all for the purpose of this article):
Runarsson – 2 (Backup keeper was needed)
2 million
Only ever brought in as a backup, but not even good enough for that. Cost almost nothing, and rightly barely used.
Cedric – 4 (New RB was needed)
Free
I get the impression he was only ever signed as a stop-gap until we got more deadwood off the books and found someone better. Which we did!
Willian – 2 (Experienced attacking midfielder was needed)
Free
We have a terrible history with signing Chelsea players. One would think that we’d have learnt our lesson by now! Many questioned the signing, and rightly so, but it was his shocking performances that really stunned us – given his Premier League experience and quality.
Mari – 5 (New CB was needed)
6 million
I actually feel he did a decent job, considering he was in and out of the team a lot, with injuries playing a big part of that.
Gabriel – 9 (New CB was needed)
26 million
Absolute bargain for a quality CB, with bags of potential. Aggressive, dominant in the air, powerful, mobile, etc. Ticks so many boxes. Best defender I’ve seen at Arsenal since the Campbell, Adams, era.
Partey – 7 (A DM had been needed for a whopping 12 years prior!!!!!)
50 million
A fair amount of money for Partey, but still a relative bargain in the current market. We have been begging for a player of his ilk since Gilberto, and kudos to Arteta for recognising that. Despite showing glimpses of absolute brilliance, he hasn’t been as consistent as we would have liked, mainly due to fitness issues.
Odegaard – 8 (New playmaker was needed)
35 million
Yet another bargain in today’s market. Some Arsenal fans felt he didn’t do enough during his loan spell to earn a permanent move, but one could see the potential. Despite a slow start this season, he has now become a nailed on starter, and has become the central creative force we’ve been missing. Works really hard off the ball as well, which is surprising for a playmaker.
Ben White – 8 (Not everyone was convinced we should spend that kind of money on another CB)
58.5 million
Eyebrows were raised at the price tag, although we all know about the “British players tax”. With Saliba on our books, should we have spent big on another CB? It does seem Saliba may not have a future at Arsenal, so I guess White’s signing does make sense. Even if Saliba does come back, we’ll then we have three quality CB’s on our books, which is a great problem to have. I feel White is already living up to that price tag, and his ball playing ability nicely complements Gabriel’s raw, direct defending.
Ramsdale – 10 (New GK was needed)
28 million
Along with Willian, the signing of Ramsdale angered many Arsenal fans. Pointing out his relegations, and comparing him to Martinez, and questioning the price tag for a “backup keeper”. At that price, he was never signed as a backup. I feel this signing is where Arsenal fans really need to apologise to Arteta, because… wow! He has been perfect! Not only have his performances been top drawer, but he has shown great leadership, mentality, and his interaction with us, and the opposing fans has made him a fan favourite already.
Tomiyasu – 9 (New RB was needed)
18.5 million
I feel like I’m over using the word “bargain”, but what can you say? Every Arsenal fan I know loves this guy already! An absolute monstrous upgrade on Cedric and Bellerin, and fair play to Arteta for this signing, because I don’t think many Arsenal fans knew too much about this guy. Despite the frame of a CB, he has great pace, mobility, and just refuses to be beaten in one-on-one situations. Best RB we’ve had since Sagna.
Lokonga – 6 (New DM/CM was needed, but an experienced one)
17.6 million
The position ideally needed an experienced head, to compete/replace Xhaka. That said, we still needed strength in depth in central midfield whatever the player’s experience. His performances have been up and down, but he’s young, new to this league and playing way more than I think we expected him to do so. I have seen some decent potential from him though. Again, another cheap signing.
Tavares – 6 (Backup LB was needed)
8 million
Like Lokonga, Tavares has played more than we thought, but has shown real potential on occasion. Has had some clangers as well, and possible issues with his mentality/discipline, but overall, I like what I see.
Arteta – 9 (Rating based purely on incomings, NOT results, performances and sales)
In regards to incomings, I feel Arteta has done a fantastic job. Not only has he improved the first team, ability wise, he has also created a huge amount of value, with the age profile and potential of the squad. Almost every signing was for a position that needed strengthening, and pretty much every signing has been a bargain. One should also note the “type” of players signed. Arteta seems to put a lot of stock into the determination, and mentality of players, which again, is something desperately needed at Arsenal. We need players to go to war with. There’s only been 3 real flops (Runarsson, Willian, Cedric), which cost us next to nothing.
One can argue if Arteta is the right man to take us forward and get the best out of this squad, but one has to respect him for assembling this team. Arteta inherited an absolute mess, but if he were to leave tomorrow, he would leave our next manager with a ton of potential to work with.
No one can argue that he hasn’t massively improved the team.
Jonbo
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