What Positions Can Arsenal Realistically Improve Next Season by Ben Dungate
Regardless of the outcome of this season, I think we can all agree that with 10 games to go the team has surpassed most of our expectations. They have achieved a level of consistency I didn’t expect, at least this soon, and played a standard of football at times that has been as good as anything we have seen from any Arsenal team. We have 3 players into double figures for league goals and still have one of the best defensive records in the league, so with such success across the board what can Arteta do next season to match or improve upon this year’s exploits?
In my opinion Arteta doesn’t have the calibre of players that Wenger had during most of his tenure, so to have this group of lads do so much so soon really speaks volumes to what is going on behind the scenes. That said, there are players out there who could elevate this team and keep us consistently challenging for the foreseeable future. The difficulty facing Arteta and Edu is identifying the right players, agreeing terms with the individual and their current club, and trying to get it all sewn up before Chelsea arrive with an extra £25M.
The other factor that I think sometimes gets overlooked is who loses their place to any new arrivals? It seems very harsh indeed to have anyone that has made a meaningful contribution to such a (so far) successful season possibly face next season sitting on the bench, but that is the sad reality. If Arsenal are to maintain this level for years to come then we are going to need more than what we presently have on our books and probably even improve the current crop of talent. So who stays and who goes?
There are a few names every Gooner will agree absolutely must remain at the club no matter what if we are to get anywhere and for me those players are: Bukayo Saka, William Saliba, Oleks Zinchenko, Martin Odegaard, Gabriel Jesus. I do not include Thomas Partey in this list simply because he is 29 and normally spends a portion of each season out injured. He is a key figure in our current set-up but the team has found a way to win without him. Of course, they also found a way to win without Jesus, and whilst I think he can be adequately covered when absent, he offers so much to the team with his versatility and relentless pressing and, at 25 he has a decade ahead to cement his status as club legend should he wish to. Both players are instrumental to the way we play and it notices when they are absent.
In my opinion every other player in the First XI, subs and reserves is replaceable, besides a few caveats, and some of them should be replaced. I thought getting Jorginho from Chelsea for £12M was a brilliant move by the club but realistically he is not a player for the long-term and indeed may not even be at the club at the start of next season. Granit Xhaka has had a career year and has completely transformed his standing among Arsenal fans. He is a machine when it comes to his fitness so I expect to see him in the line-up next season, but as good as he has been this term there are better players available who might add an extra dimension to the team. The board appear to agree because all we hear in the news is Declan Rice this, Moises Caicedo that.
Ben White has demonstrated what a classy player he is. So much so I considered putting him on the list of players that absolutely must stay. He is a great athlete and as cover for RB, CB and even DM he is a key member of the squad. The unfortunate truth for Benjamin White is though, that as good as he has been, better more traditional right-backs are out there. What is a saving grace for him aside from his versatility and athleticism is that he has struck up an excellent on-field relationship with Saka, and Arsenal don’t play with a traditional full-back set-up, much to Kieran Tierney’s chagrin. Also, White occupies a hybrid RCB/RB role which is a difficult position to master. He has shown great tactical awareness of when to attack and when to stay back, and for this reason, along with Tomiyasu’s presence, I see him keeping his place in the team, not just the squad. I think this decision is easily justifiable when you consider the work he gets through during a game and the complexity of the role.
Gabriel Magalhães is like Marmite for me. I don’t like him but I accept that others do and I must respect their wrong opinion. I just. Our occasionally erratic centre half has been solid alongside Saliba all season. He is prone to mistakes, as are all players, it’s just unfortunate that when Gabriel makes one it tends to lead to us conceding a goal. I would never question his desire or effort and he has also shown an element of leadership which is vital when playing in such a pivotal position. Good, left-sided central defenders are rare and getting a better one will not only be hard but very costly. I think we can rule ourselves out for the running for the Josko Gvardiol race. He will go to Man City, Chelsea or one of the other European goliaths. Probably Bayern Munich as seems to be the case with every good player in the Bundesliga.
Gabriel Martinelli. I like him. A lot. He is fact and direct. He has increased his work for the team, his goal output and his consistency, and despite a bit of a dry spell in which time the whole team struggled to score goals, he is our leading goal scorer in the league. He is just 21 and a Brazilian international. So why then isn’t he one of the players on my list of must keeps? Because he is a left winger and we are living in the age of the left winger and the right wingback. We tried to buy Mykhailo Mudryk, a very slightly older carbon copy of Martinelli in terms of his playing style. I am glad we have Martinelli and have no desire to see him sold or dislodged but with such an abundance of wingers in the world right now he is replaceable.
Lastly, Aaron Ramsdale. I don’t have much to say when it comes to Ramsdale. He’s like milk, you never know what you’re going to get until you take the lid off. One day it can be awesome and then next day it ruins your Cornflakes. If he can stop trying to be a baller so much and just do what he does best which is make seemingly impossible saves and incite the fury of our opponents with his epic shithousery then I will be happy. He will keep his place and probably rightly so. All GKs make mistakes, it comes with the position, and he won’t realistically mature as a goalkeeper for at least another 5 years and has spoken of his desire to go down as an Arsenal legend. I think he has done enough to earn the right to build upon his popularity amongst the supporters and see if he can etch his name into the history books of this great club.
Ben Dungate
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