Paul Merson reveals where he thinks Arsenal will finish next season if they don’t make major summer changes.
Paul Merson reckons that Arsenal will finish below the top four again next season if Mikel Arteta isn’t supported to make a major overhaul of his squad.
Arsenal hasn’t played in the Champions League since the 2016/2017 season and they have also struggled to get back into a European place this season.
They hoped to return to the Champions League by winning the Europa League but they have just been eliminated from the competition.
Their 1-0 win over West Ham today has helped their cause but Paul Merson believes the team will struggle again next season unless they allow Mikel Arteta to sign his players.
He admitted that the Spaniard has made the team better but added that if they fail to make more signings, they will finish next season eighth in the Premier League table, at best.
‘Unless Mikel Arteta gets some players in and out of Arsenal this summer this team is going to finish seventh or eighth next season,’ Merson told Starsport.
‘I’m not surprised Mesut Ozil’s agent says he’s not going anywhere though. Where can he go on that money? ‘If he was on £50,000-a-week everybody would be trying to sign him but because he’s on £350,000 everyone hates him.
‘Arteta needs to get players out though, and I don’t think he’ll be too upset that Sokratis says he’ll go if he’s not playing enough. ‘I like players who are honest like that to be fair to him. It’s better than being prepared to just sit around picking up your money. ‘Arsenal need to get their wage bill down and get rid of players who don’t have a future there. So Sokratis is expendable.
‘But I hope Arteta gets to bring in a few too because he hasn’t really got his own players there yet. ‘He will need a good pre-season and some new signings but I can see progress already even though they went out of the Europa League.’
It really is gloomy for some but as things stand today, European football next season is definitely in reach, there is a core group of younger players that will come on massively and there will be some money to spend in the summer. It could be a lot worse.
