Despite Arsenal desperately needing midfield reinforcements on deadline day, Mikel Arteta and technical director Edu refused to hit the panic button for a second consecutive transfer window.
Injuries to midfield duo Mohamed Elneny and Thomas Partey saw plans change in the remaining 72 hours of the window, though such short notice ultimately made things too complex for any reinforcements to be secured.
The Gunners made a last-ditch attempt to prise Douglas Luiz away from Aston Villa, with a total of three bids being submitted for the Brazilian. However, their Premier League counterparts refused to budge and rejected all three offers.
READ MORE: Douglas Luiz bids, Hector Bellerin decision, Maitland-Niles deal: Arsenal transfer state of play
Speaking during today's press conference, Arteta explained the lack of activity. "We did the business pretty early, but unfortunately in the last 72 hours Thomas (Partey) got injured in the same place as last time and then Mo (Elneny) has a long-term injury and we had to react in the market," he said. "We tried and at the end of the day we have to bring in the players we feel are right for the team and the club, but we didn’t manage to do that."
Following on from a frustrating day for Arsenal, It has since emerged that Luiz was not the only player that could have been signed. The Athletic report that the club were offered the chance to reignite their interest in Arthur Melo, but declined, with Partey and Elneny's absences leaving Arsenal on the hunt for someone who could operate as a No.6.
Arthur, who joined Juventus from Barcelona for around £71million in 2020, is believed to have been on Arsenal's radar in January and a deal appeared to be close at one point before reservations emerged over the 26-year-old's profile. Eight months later and still out of favour in Italy, Liverpool decided to take advantage of his availability on deadline day by signing him on a season-long loan in the hope to soften injury blows of their own.
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