Arsenal will go into the season having not met Edu's wish of having 25 players in the senior squad. Despite five arrivals this summer, the club were unable to secure crucial additions in both the central midfield and wide forward areas.
The club had a clear interest in both positions having failed in their pursuit of former Leeds United winger Raphinha who subsequently joined Barcelona. football.london understands Arsenal had a long-term interest in Youri Tielemans and three deadline day bids for Douglas Luiz proved unsuccessful.
Too little, too late for the Gunners. This leaves them short of what Edu wanted prior to the summer’s transfer window beginning.
READ MORE: Edu inadvertently has admitted Arsenal’s summer transfer failure amid Douglas Luiz rejection
Speaking to ESPN Brazil he described his goals for the summer. He said: "If we can afford it financially and we don’t have to do the turnaround in the squad that we’ve had to, what I want is 22 outfield players and three goalkeepers. A lot of things have to be put in place and that takes time, so I am expecting a busy summer.”
Luiz would have become the 25th member of the squad however having missed out on the Brazilian it leaves the club short. With four competitions to face and injuries already befalling the Gunners, it could prove a bigger challenge than it needed to be.
That said, what Arsenal will benefit from is the high level of versatility in the group. Ben White has already proven this asset in his game having deputised at right-back and even kept the now fit Takehiro Tomiyasu out of the starting eleven.
Looking at the graphic below it becomes clear to see that the Gunners have three players for every position. However, nine of the eleven roles require a player to operate out of position (highlighted in yellow in the below graphic) to offer Mikel Arteta the coverage.
The standout position is certainly at right-wing. Bukayo Saka strikes a lonely figure with two far less experienced options behind him in Marquinhos and Reiss Nelson, the latter of which is currently out injured for some weeks.
Arsenal wanted to sign Raphinha earlier in the window however Barcelona’s interest in the player quickly made this impossible. Despite links to further wide players the club never came close to bringing one in and still allowed Nicolas Pepe to leave on loan.
Arteta spoke of the club only wanting quality to come through the doors this summer. It is a noble policy and the club are in the competitive position they are in because of it but questions will be raised that they may have undermined the potential of their season by not perhaps slightly lowering expectations, especially when concerning players like Tielemans who the club were never convinced by enough to make an official offer.
Arsenal face Manchester United this weekend who have now won their last three. One of the two side’s winning runs will end on Sunday and if it is Arsenal, the snowballing of the window’s disappointing end followed by dropped points could drastically change the mood.
READ NEXT:
Danilo and Mudryk deals completed, Zaha signs - Arsenal's best and worst transfer deadline day
Douglas Luiz passes £15m Arsenal transfer audition as Steven Gerrard hints at Aston Villa exit
Arsenal's 25-man Premier League squad if three deals are completed on transfer deadline day
Arsenal transfer business under the microscope in 'good deal' or 'bad deal'
