Did Arsenal enjoy a better transfer window than rivals Spurs? (Opinion)

Arsenal and Tottenham could well be considered in the debate for summer transfers of the season, but who had the better window?

The Gunners moved to bring in Gabriel Magalhaes, Willian and Thomas Partey on a permanent deals, while agreeing to extend Dani Ceballos loan by a further season.

We also agreed a new contract for Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang who was linked with the exit door, while signing Pablo Mari and Cedric Soares on permanent deals after impressing the boss on loan towards the end of last season.

Tottenham on the other hand have moved to bring back former superstar Gareth Bale, while also concluding deals for Sergio Reguilon, Pierre Hojberg, Matt Doherty and Carlos Vinicius.

Going into the summer, I pegged Spurs as guaranteed to bring in at least one new centre-back, with their defensive midfield area one that needed addressing, and a back-up striker also.

Hojberg will play deep in midfield at the base of the five, but I certainly wouldn’t describe him as a defensive midfielder. I’m actually amazed that they didn’t bring in a centre-back, and can see this being a hindrance to their campaign, especially with both Jan Vertonghen and Juan Foyth having departed this summer.

Arsenal’s two problem areas have both been addressed on the other hand, and improved in some fashion, with both Gabriel and Partey expected to enjoy huge seasons in North London.

Spurs have definitely papered over cracks which will remain, and Bale will of course be expected to have a huge impact when fit, but how long that will take to happen after such minimal action is anybody’s guess.

I will go as far as to say that Arsenal had the better window, despite our rivals bringing in more players, although the Welsh forward could well make a huge difference if he could re-find the form that led to his move to Real Madrid all those years back.

Am I alone in thinking our window was better in relation to our needs?

Patrick

Tags tottenham

50 Comments

  1. For once Arsenal has signed all the players that was needed in one transfer window. I wouldn’t mind an attacking mid as well, but I am really happy about our transfers and would choose our players over the spuds players anytime.

    1. AGREE!

      I was looking for a playmaker but you know what? we have Ceballos who was doing two jobs in the midfield, Saka, Pepe, and Willian.

      I believe they all can be good playmakers if they can have someone who can pass them the ball from behind.

      I wouldn’t compare us to the other teams, we should strengthen our team to compete with them while I’m sure they are looking forward for competing in CL!

  2. Bale even on loan is a huge boost and a huge game changer. Even though he isn’t fit, the Spurs forward line knows there is now pressure on them to perform and someone will get dropped. Hojberg another smart move by them too and will do well in their midfield. The others is wait and see situation. They’ve built a solid squad and had a good summer. Onto us, we got Gabriel who is having a great start to his Arsenal career, Ceballos back on loan is a great move, backup GK more a formality, Willian adds more experience to our forward line and could prove to be a smart signing. And of course the big one is Thomas Partey who could change our entire midfield and really elevate this team. Still a hole in midfield w/ a creative player but lets see what Arteta has up his sleeves. Close call on who has had the better summer. We’ll just have to see how the season plays out honestly. I think both clubs have done well with this window though. (Here’s to hoping the spurs signings flop!)

  3. Spurs definitely had the better window, not only did they sign a top second striker but both fullbacks that are top quality and the holding midfielder in Hojbjerg, not to mention the second coming of Bale. I think the Arsenal need to prepare themselves for another couple of seasons or so in the shadow of their North London Masters. 🙂

    1. Back to your forum you Shameless SPUD! Tierney>>>> reguillon (whatever his name is), makeshift AMN at rightback is light years ahead of Doherty, he’s getting skinned mercilessly and hojberg cant lace partey’s boots. Gabriel walks into your defense. Your part-professional golfer is the only decent acquisition. Jog on…. ha ha ha

      1. Was literally going to write the same thing except add that on current form I’d take Willian over Bale as well

      2. Yes, AMN over the top performing right back in the prem over the past 2 years, after Trent. 👌🏼

    2. Tony Borg it must be very difficult and frustrating being a spurs fan, I mean how can you have a player front line that is guaranteed to score over 40 goals a season with no trophy to show for it🤣🤣🤣.

    3. The same shadow you’ve only just come out of?! Don’t worry it won’t be long until you’re back in your place 🙂

    4. Spot on.

      Partey is very average imo, I’ve never seen him do anything good.

      I agree about the centre backs but we’ll see how that pans out, theyre no worse than the Gooner CBs and I suspect we’ll splash out on Rodon aswell as possibly buying Skriniar in January.

      1. @spurs, and still finish below us. Actually your position is under threat by Everton this year watch ur back you guys might finsih as low as 8th or 9th.

    5. @Tony, no point of signing bale he won’t even be fit for 5 games whole year. He will keep your treatment room occupied though. Spuds were always in our shadow and will remain there for ever. Competition is always among the equals and spuds are not our equal. crawl back into your hole and make sure your empty trophy cabnet does not fall on you.

  4. We’ve had a fantastic window! As for that lot down the road, I’d say their business was decent… Bale alone is huge!
    As for the better window.. hmm not sure.. one thing I do know is though this has been one of the greatest windows ever in the PL and I can’t wait to watch the next 34 games!! Bring it on!

    1. Agree.
      And the first few games of the PL has shown that this is going to be a very very interesting season.

  5. TBH Patrick , what Spuds have or have not done interests me as little as embroidery. Indeeed, as my nearest and dearest embroiders regularly, I am, in a way, more interested in that. And certainly more than whatever Spuds are up to!
    On Arsenal we have had a partial only successful window. We still need another 5, at minimum, players of PARTEY QUALITY, THOUGH NOT IN HIS POSITION OBVIOUSLY.

    As we have not got rid of much of the deadwood either, then a partial success is what we have . Perhaps better than expectations BUT only because the expectatations of this realist were so dismal, even though I did, stupidly I admit, really believe we were going to get Aoure. LESSON LEARNED , YOU MAY BE SURE.

    1. Five players of Parteys quality??? I’m a Arsenal supporter and even I think that’s ridiculous.
      I think bringing in a top creative midfielder would be one and the only other spot we could sign a top player in is a right centre back to partner Gabriel. I think Saliba will turn out to be a great centreback for us but might be another season or two away from that at just 19 years old.with that in mind I’d like to see Arsenal make a bold statement and go in for Koulibaly in the January transfer window. I think bringing him in for 2-3 years and having Saliba learn behind him and Gabriel would be a great idea. Those are the only two moves I would go for to fill out our squad. And signing Ceballos permanently.

      Leno
      Bellerin, Koulibaly, Gabriel, Tierney
      Partey
      Ceballos. Aouar
      Willian. Lacazette. Aubamayang

  6. Both clubs have strengthened no doubt, but I Have contacts in Spain who say Partey has been poor the last year and the change of pace from a club that is so defensively and plays in their own half to a fast Premier league is unlikely to suit him. Willian is their best buy, pacey , good finisher, his only problem is hes moody , gives 100% when he feel likes it.
    They key to the question is can Bale still perform???

  7. OT… Eddie scored for England U21s earlier…. 👍 Now joint top scorer at this level, along with Shearer and Jeffers 👏

  8. Aouar is still young a.d who knows maybe we may get him Jauary or next summer. He is a potential star for me. One to replace Ozil.

  9. Aouar is still young and who knows maybe we may get him Jauary or next summer. He is a potential star for me. One to replace Ozil.

  10. Tottenham Hotspur fans believe we can win the premier league this season because our transfer ….. (ADMIN COMMENT Can someone call a doctor lol

        1. At The Arsenal AdminPat there is no need to lower one’s standards to accommodate vulgarity 😉
          I’ll try to keep it going

    1. Seems like the admins have gone to sleep. A troll and foul mouthed one at that.
      The spuds only comment on here as they don’t have a forum of their own, a bit like trophies 🤣

    2. Winning EPL means you win a trophy dude, so you can rest assure that’s not happening ever. Are you guys not allergic to trophies?? Like you guys need to be taken to ER if you even come with 10m of any trophy.

  11. What if Arteta decides Partey needs time to adapt like Saliba, sends him on loan to Newcastle..ahaha.

  12. I think us gunners definitely had the better window but we won’t really know for sure till seasons end and where each team finishes to be honest. I think us gunners can kiss a move for Aouar goodbye as bigger clubs will definitely be in for him either in January or at seasons end and I don’t think we should get into a bidding war for a player that we weren’t his preferred destination. I think there are other players out there that can offer what he does. Two I like are Nicolas Barella from Inter and Carlos Solar from Valencia. Solar I think would be a great buy and Valencia seem to be selling everyone so we should get in while oppustunity is there.

  13. Don’t forget that the EFL window is still open and the Swansea CB Joe Rodon looks like an excellent young player, so Spurs probably aren’t done. Regardless, Spurs still had the better window IMO. They improved a better side than Arsenal to a greater degree. Cover at CB is desirable but it’s not desperately required in terms of starting spots. But they finally got top class full backs (La Liga team of the year LB and 2nd most productive PL RB behind TAA), a CDM (most PL ball recoveries and interceptions last year) to help unlock last summer’s signings in Lo Celso and Ndombele, a striker who top scored in Portugal, and Bale just for kicks. And they did it all (so far) for 20m or so less than Arsenal spent. Let’s see what happens but Spurs have plugged all their glaring issues with top players. Arsenal have done well also, but probably need a creative player or 2.

    1. Was happy with what we done still missing that creative midfield player could have been ozil but clearly Arteta doesn’t trust him to put the full shift in spuds have bale if he comes off then would be a great signing but with his injury record of late hopefully he spends more time with the physio then on the pitch!!🤣

  14. I think Afc had the better window, but only because we needed to. We absolutely needed players of Gabriel and Partey’s quality in their respective position, and needed a player of Willian’s experience and quality for more than just his impact on the field, he has a stacked resume and can be a positive influence on our younger players in the squad. As for the spuds, the really needed a cb which they didn’t get so they’ll have to persist with Dier as an option, who is not good enough imo for that role, the only real potential difference maker is Bale, the others just more or less improved their depth, but don’t improve the quality of their suad much.

  15. For someone who has zero interest in who Spurs buy or sell I am relatively happy with our transfer dealings particularly with the acquisition of Partey and Gabriel.As a long term admirer of Willian, I have been disappointed with his contributions thus far, but hopefully he will come good soon.As for Soares and Mari, they have signed as back ups ,in case of injury.Personally I do not rate either and would have relied on the likes of AMN and Holding Sad that Tierney is likely to miss the Man City match.In the circumstances Arteta may well continue with the 3-4-3 set up with Gabriel as LCB and hopefully AMN to stifle KDB and /or Mahrez.

  16. Spurs have had an incredible window. Their squad and first 11 is as good as anyone’s. They are years infront of us on and off the field. Mouriho is world class. We can’t even afford a mascot. The sooner we accept that and stop worrying about them the sooner we’ll move forward.

    1. IMO, little Mou will be jobless sooner rather than later and who knows he might just apply for the mascot’s job once fans return back to the stands.
      Due to Wenger’s stupidity we have fallen low, but that is history, the least we can is a top four and title bid next year once the jersey merchant has found a new shop to sell his wares thereby freeing up wages for a top top CAM.If they were so good, how come they ended empty handed and we with a rag tag team won two pieces of silver? With Gabriel and Partey we now have man mountains, the squad is quite balanced, except Ozil, Kolasinac who will do anything to destabilize our progress on the pitch if at all they ever make it.

  17. With the additional of Partey and Gabriel, I believe we have addressed the most pressing needs of Arsenal. As for Spurs, I think they did good business in Hojbierg in the midfield but failed to address their center-back problem. I don’t fancy Dier playing as a CB

    Off-topic
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  18. You people should stop comparing our club to spurs we are not their mate we should be thinking of how to catch up and surpass the achievement of clubs like man utd and Liverpool instead please.. Comparing arsenal to spurs is total downgrading to us because though we are in the same location doesn’t make us mate

  19. It’s tough to judge without actually seeing Partey performing in team. If he turns out to be as good as all fans assumed over last 2 months then we need not worry on significantly improving on points tally from last year.
    However this year top 4 competition looks very tricky. Spuds have done well on paper and will benefit significantly if Bale surprises by staying relatively injury free. Kane also has shown tendency of missing games in recent seasons. For them it all hinges on these 2 players delivering consistently. For last few games, they look have been lifted by signing of Bale. That uplift has limited time impact.

    Chelsea is also looking like progressing in right direction. Don’t know what to expect from Man city and ManU. City in particularly might surprise by underperforming.

    We actually have addressed our defensive issues without addressing three critical aspects….a) offensively how to break teams defending deep with numbers and b) a true leader on pitch who all lookup to and who is able to drag teammates when they are sulking or calm things when opposition lay seize in our half …. someone how is master of game management.
    c) Our midfield, even with Partey looks weak to me. Hardly any depth compared to Pool or ManU/city. But we have taken some critical steps in right direction. But we still need to improve a lot and need players who can transition from defence to attack faster and retain possession even under pressure on consistent basis.

    Other smaller issues for long term are with Pepe not living upto expectations, right wing looks still weak and too much of our attack goes through left side. This might get addressed by better coaching as Pepe has shown sigh of improving in last few months any may still deliver on expectations when signed. Last is improvement in goals form free direct kicks. We don’t have anyone outstanding on that front.

    Then there is small factor of Covid, VAR luck. How that will impact teams in critical games who knows. Covid is the Joker in pack. Suddenly 2 critical players falling ill to Covid or forced into quarantine might put any managers planning out of window. And lesser rest time will have impact on injuries…….
    What a tricky season its going to be with many non controllable factors.

    Interesting season ahead for top 4 finish. But for now I am satisfied how our club has done business without looking at others. I am sure most of us would have taken this when transfer window opened this year.

  20. We have good balance to side, lack a little on creativity front in middle but I think that is not a big problem with Saka becoming a regular and Partey signing giving Ceballos more license to roam. Spurs had a good transfer window as well but they still lack the team balance, they are one injury away from disaster either to son or Kane. I don’t think Bale is a good signing, I am a Madrid fan as well and can tell you for sure, on his day he is brilliant but it’s very rare he has his days plus he is mostly injured so can not be relied upon. One reason zizu did not want him was this, he was not available for selection when needed because of injury as a result he could not rely on bale and could not make him part of his plans. A player who can not be relied upon by manage to execute his plans, is always deemed surplus.

  21. In a behind closed door showcase that is the premier league this season, could it be that arsenal spurs and others compete for the league.

    Harry Redknapp said spurs for the league. I dont think that comment would of come about if it wasnt for the Liverpool result. Even my liverpool fan friend said that was hard to take.

    Could the league this season draw up some interesting conclusions. Everton have a better midfield then what liverpool put on against Villa! Maybe Villa are the new Sheff United this season. Maybe Man U hover around the top 6 and chelsea are chasing 4th….

    Harry wouldn’t of mentioned winning the league dream if it wasnt for also (as well as liverpool result) Mourinho.

    He gets results. Long term building and all that is still a question. But short term he gets results. United finishing 2nd under him and that was a big achieve for united. Look at them since?

    There signings, including Joe Hart has winners in their group. Bale adds to that.

    They will do well, even better then us. It’s the current norm as they have finished above us recently.

    However, arsenal with their transfer window brought in most of what was required. A centre back, 2 in fact, to replace soon to go players. A winger who can play with or challenge pepe for a place (competition). And a centre midfielder who competes our current set. Then we add a few u23 players to bulk up our system after we let a few go. Salah appears the one to consider. Maybe thays the future with Saka and Martinelli…

    I think our targets dont change. Even if spurs fans go for the league.

    I’m looking forward to seeing Auba Partey and Gabriel play together.

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