Are Arsenal out of funds for January transfers?

Edu and Mikel Arteta had a very busy summer transfer window, and although Arsenal spent more money than ever before, one would have to say that it was reasonably successful, with most of the new arrivals being integrated into the first team very quickly.

But after the season started, Arteta was at pains to admit that we were only halfway through our rebuilding process, which led us fans to believe that we could expect some more departures and arrivals to come in the future windows.

With Elneny, Nketiah and Lacazette certain to leave for free next summer, and Bernd Leno announcing he would be “considering his options” at Christmas, plus the fact that Cedric, Pablo Mari, Chambers, Pepe, Kolasinac and Holding are hardly ever seen in public, makes me think there are many more changes to come very soon.

But Arteta seemed to indicate the opposite when asked about the transfer window yesterday. He said: “I think we have to focus on the players that we have, try to make them, better and take more chances than we’re doing because we need more margins in games to win games and that’s what we have to do without losing our solidity defensively, which we have been good at, and try to add more goals to the team.”

Obviously the first thing that comes to mind is that he used all of our transfer funds in the summer and there is nothing left in the kitty until next summer. In which case he will have to make do with what he has for this campaign, which seems likely to me, so what can he do in that case.

So, if we need to score more goals, perhaps he should try using a few more of our strikers as we have so many available?

If he wants to “focus on the players we have”, maybe he should give the unused players a chance to prove their worth?

If he thinks that Aubameyang is not getting enough service (despite our captains glaring misses) perhaps he should try improving the midfield?

And if he doesn’t think the players we have are good enough to fix all those problems, then maybe he should focus on bringing in better replacements in the transfer window, but how can he do that if the piggy bank is empty?

Ahh maybe I’m just worrying for nothing and everything will come together tomorrow and we’ll beat Everton 6-0, with Aubameyang getting a hat-trick (We can all dream!)

Tags Arsenal transfers Arteta

44 Comments

      1. No way we have a whole team or substitutes we could sell, to bring in players that would improve the first.
        Even bringing back some of our loan players are better than some of these, like Ballard, Saliba Mavropanos Clarke Torreira, Guendozi, Nelson
        Leno
        Chambers Holding Mari
        Cedric Elneny Xhaka Kolasinac
        Pepe Lacazette Nketiah

        Bring in a new keeper and a new striker, plus those loan players back and we would be a better team no doubt.

        Ok it’s not going to happen but we would make a few quid on those reserve players.

      2. Doesn’t make much sense analysing that purely on nominal figures without adjusting for inflation on transfer fees. You can’t say that 35 million for Chamberlain in 2017 was a higher figure than 23 million paid for Anelka in 1999. Similarly, 24 million for Adebayor in 2009 was more valuable that 35 for Chamberlain or Iwobi in 2017 and 2019 respectively.

        1. WONDERFUL! Someone who has realism about them!

          YOU MIGHT JUST AS WELL COMPARE TODAYS HOUSE PRICES TO THOSE OF TWENTY YEARS AGO, if you want wrong conclusions.

          To be of any use whatsoever, as I repeatedly say, all comparisons must compare like with like or they are pointless.
          So glad to see someone at last who gets this!

          1. Fun fact in this regard Bergkamp is still our most expensive signing ever adjusted for transfer inflation (wasn’t top 20 for all clubs though.) Henry was 2nd and Ozil 3rd. It was done on sky sports in the Jan Auba was signed so think he’s included and that would make Pepe doubtful to surpass Ozil.

          1. It’s scary to think how much we actually sold Overmars for when taking the time value of money forumla into account.

            PV={FV}/{(1+r)}

          2. Ad PAT why am I not surprised at you choosing- and “choosing” is the correct word – to see only the bald question and not seeing the context and reality of how inflation had vastly changed that simplistic question!

            To treat it with the simplicity you did surprises me, sadly, not at all.

            A DEEPER THINKING MODERATOR WOULD HAVE ANSWERED THAT QUESTION WITH A POST ON SIMILAR LINES TO THAT OF Th14- Tw14.

            But ALL you could come up with was a pitiful “Haha”.and “not seeing any hidden clauses”. SIGH!

  1. Yes, I also believe we don’t have transfer budget left to buy a new player in January

    As for our midfielders, they’re good enough. The main problem is our high pressers, who can’t make the opposition’s defenders and GK nervous

    Had they been able to do it constantly, we would’ve made many good counter-pressing situations and that’d be much better than having any playmaker or creative midfielder in the world

    1. @gai
      RealTalk
      Our forward players don’t have the engines to go toe to toe with the top 4 teams in high pressure mode…

  2. People are ignoring simple fact here we have have given him most transfer funds last window and you can give me three times more in January but it won’t change anything. You can have all the money in world but with poor tactician and manager I am afriad it will same old same old story. We should invest in a proper proven manager then squad as our squad is good enough to make top 4 with a good tactical manager.

  3. Arteta goes on and on about not taking chances, but is in denial regarding the lack of chances created by his mid fielders and creatives. Moribund man. Horrible footballing philosophy.

  4. It is not just all on the players, it’s also tactics.

    Is it the best 11 suited to the match?
    Has Arteta designed the best game plan?
    Has he made proper halftime changes?
    Are the subs like for like or wholesale changes?

    It’s a false narrative to suggest it’s the players rather than players, manager, tactics, subs, etc…

    Arteta has been given over twice the funds Emery had, plus total control that Emery was denied. And finished worse in final table standings.

    Tuchel massively improved on what Lampard started, without buying a player the 2nd half of last season.

    Wenger and Emery got better results with inferior squads to Arteta’s.

    Accountability falls on manager too, not just on the players. Either top 5 and European football or Arteta goes.

    Time to get experienced manager rather than giving another £100 million to Arteta and hope for progress.

  5. Ad PAT” you say”we can all dream”! Dreamers who stop at mere dreams, get nowhere in life.

    Only realistic planners who take action and forego dreams are winners. Dreams are good for children as it gives them the impetus to strive for what they want to become.

    BUT MATURE ADULTS KNOW HOW FANCIFUL SIMPLY DREAMING BUT WITHOUT ACTION ALWAYS IS.

  6. The signings we have are enough to achieve top 6 which, sadly, is what I believe our real target is this season.

    1. It should have been 7-0, no shot on target, back 5 playing against just 3 players and still were outmuscled

  7. No more funds should be made available till the season ends and we know where we are in the league ,he’s been backed heavily and 12 players signed he should be getting us top 4 -5 minimum .
    If he was to sign more players in January and it goes tits up then the next manager will then have to work with what he’s got rather than having a fresh start with funds that could have been saved in January.
    There’s only a certain amount of money you can keep throwing at a manager until it becomes obvious that it’s not working ,for me we have already past that stage .
    Let him prove to us that he can do it without endless amounts of backing .

    1. I agree with you.
      Am done making excuses for our overpaid players, westharm has given me wake up call and it’s a serious reality check

    2. Fair point Dan kit
      At this stage Arteta has to show that he can fully integrate his players and make it work. No longer a novice, the second half of the season will show if MA can make a true fist of it. I’ve long felt he will be successful in management but at the elite level, I’m not so sure. Yup, the next six months are crucial for us

    3. Not sure of everyone’s opinion on this but I believe once you have a half decent squad like we do you should only need to sign 1 great player and 1 decent squad player a year.

      This only works if you manage assets well though and don’t let contracts run down or keep loaning players out instead of selling.

  8. How much of Arsenal’s money has Arteta squandered unnecessarily on recent transfers?….i.e. player purchases that were not needed and have, so far, shown to have little or no impact on team performance. Two in particular stand out: 5OM on the underwhelming and green, Ben White (despite having our own player, Saliba); 30M of Ramsdale (despite having Leno). It would have been a better business decision if they had fired Arteta at a cost of 6M and used the extra money to hire a more experienced manager. This is exactly how all the top clubs are being run… making better use of scarce money.

    AFC has one of the lowest manager hiring cost of the top PL teams. We are getting exactly what we are paying for…cut-price performance from an inexperienced, cut-price manager.

  9. It’s obvious where the weaknesses lie atm, dm and striker, mainly because two players who should be performing – Auba and Partey aren’t – for whatever reason. Either these players have to step up or we have strengthen elsewhere.

  10. Current league position pretty much indicative of where Arsenal will finish at season’s end. Don’t know how much that will be seen as progress.

  11. Admini Pat.
    With due respect to you as I have to say Arsenal are at the moment not in the next January transfer mode. But are currently in the process of finishing in the top4 to top5 before the turn of the year. When they will switch to the transfer mode to further improve the team by signing some few top quality new players and offloading some permanently and loan out some.

    Therefore, I beseech all and sundry of us Gooners, Arteta and the Gunners alike to be on our knees praying to see Arsenal beat Everton tomorrow to regain the top5 spot that they lost to Tottenham Hs today.

    The Everton match may not be easy for Arsenal to win it. Because both Everton and Arsenal are under pressure to produce a result in the match. For this reason, let Arteta try by all means to get his starting XI team and Subs for the match spot on that can and will win the match.

  12. What we need is CDM in the likes of Bissouma,, bruno guimarães or  Frank kessie who can seat  deep and allows Thomas partey and Odegaard and ESR plays in front of them and then you will see a firely midfield… l doubt Sterling for January but we could get Dennis Zakaria, Renato Sanchez, Bruno Guimaraes, Pedro Goncalves and striker or a striker in the summer .🤔

  13. What makes any of you think that money gained from player sales in January will be used to buy new players?

    Remember KSE have be find $765m for the moving of their Rams franchise to LA.

    The January window should be interesting don’t you think!!

  14. shouldn’t need more funds. he got a ton invested for him to build a squad and he needs to make it work, including Aubameyang. That’s his job and he shouldn’t expect anything major in Jan, and nor should we.

  15. There will be bargains to be had in January as so many players will be or of contract in the summer and clubs won’t want to lose their players on free transfers. I think this might be somewhat tactical- if you say there’s money to be spent then it puts you in a bad position to negotiate and prices go up immediately. For years we’ve been told that the club is one of the most stable financially, so in the post-pandemic era it might be time to take a gamble and be ruthless in taking advantage of the new context.

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