Despite a superb start to the season, it was hard to shake the feeling that Arsenal were only an injury away from their title hopes collapsing. By the time the World Cup came along, Mikel Arteta had started eight players in every Premier League match the Gunners had played. An absence for one of those and it could be curtains.
In fairness to Arsenal, when those injuries inevitably came, they coped well with smart January recruitment. Leandro Trossard helped take over the baton from Eddie Nketiah in Gabriel Jesus' absence, while Jorginho proved a more than adept sticking plaster during Thomas Partey's time on the sidelines.
As William Saliba's injury came along though, it felt that Arsenal's squad depth issues had finally caught up with them. They went on a four game winless run as Rob Holding's inability to cover effectively for the Frenchman became a real issue. Now though it seems as though Arsenal's third January signing could be a solution.
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Jakub Kiwior was thrown in for his first start against Chelsea and impressed as the Gunners came out 3-1 winners. While it was not exactly a testing night against the impotent Blues attack, the Polish international brought a composure to the backline that had been sorely lacking across the four game winless streak.
"He looked ready," said Mikel Arteta in his post-match press conference when asked to explain why he'd chosen to bring Kiwior in. "He looked fresh, he looked really determined. He's been getting better and better every single day. Not only training but his interaction, his language, he is more settled and is a player that I really like which is why we signed him. He’s got the potential at his age to be great and I think he had a big task against the players he had to face today and I think he did really well."
It was the kind of display that brings some much needed confidence back in to the Arsenal backline. Within moments though, they were reminded just how precarious that is.
In the concession of Noni Madueke's goal Gabriel hurt his ankle and was eventually forced to come off. Although Arteta described the Brazilian's injury as a "big concern" it's understood that he received treatment in the dressing room after the game and was subsequently able to conduct media duties with international broadcasters. There is confidence that he should be fit for the trip to Newcastle on Sunday.
The fear of a potential absence for Gabriel though served as yet another stark reminder of the squad depth issues Arsenal still have. Regardless of whether they do catch Manchester City or not in this season's title race, Pep Guardiola's side have set a level that the Gunners must look to match going forward. If the two sides were to both play their strongest 11s then Arsenal would probably be able to give City a game, but when you compare the two squads there currently is no contest.
It is this that will be their biggest concern going into the summer. football.london understands that they are interested in bringing in Declan Rice from West Ham to solve the problem of a drop off in quality in midfield. At the back Crystal Palace's Marc Guehi is a player of interest while Edmond Tapsoba of Bayer Leverkusen is another player the Gunners have looked at.
As Arsenal face the new challenge of playing both Champions League and Premier League football, they can no longer afford to have the kind of distinction between first and second team that has existed in the past. Signings like Kiwior go a long way to addressing that, and more will be needed in the summer.
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