Arsenal have been tipped to challenge London-based Premier League rivals Chelsea and Tottenham for a top-four spot next season.
The Gunners have enjoyed a successful pre-season, picking up wins over Everton, Chelsea and Sevilla. It's not just the impressive work on the pitch that has caught the eye of rival clubs, with technical director Edu Gaspar completing five deals to sign Gabriel Jesus, Oleksandr Zinchenko, Fabio Vieira, Marquinhos and Matt Turner this summer.
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp labelled Arsenal's 6-0 win over Sevilla in pre-season "impressive" after admitting he watched parts of the game prior to the FA Community Shield victory over Manchester City. Klopp isn't the only one to praise the Gunners and be concerned about their threat in the upcoming 2022/23 season, with Manchester United legend Peter Schmeichel also backing the north London side for a good season.
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Arsenal will travel to Crystal Palace for the Premier League season opener on Friday, with Gabriel Jesus in fine form leading the Gunners' attack. Speaking to The Times, Schmeichel said: "I’m looking at Arsenal and for the first time in a long time thinking 'top four'".
Mikel Arteta's side narrowly missed out on Champions League football last year after losing to Newcastle and Spurs in their final three games of the season, seeing their north London rivals leapfrog them into the top four. Schmeichel believes Chelsea and Spurs are well-placed heading into the new season as they look challenge Manchester City and Liverpool.
"The competition will come from Chelsea, and from Spurs, who have signed well and in Antonio Conte have a very clever manager who is so good at getting the maximum out of his players. Manchester United? Pre-season has been promising but the reality is that a long process of transition is required."
Arteta hinted after the win over Sevilla that the club are looking to complete more deals before the transfer deadline 'if the market allows'. The Spaniard said: "We’re still hoping to do something else if the market allows us to do that.
"You've seen some movement in the other direction in the last few days so we want to get the perfect balance and the plan we wanted right at the beginning. Whether we can accomplish that or not is another story, but I’m happy with where we are now."
Depending on further additions to the squad, as well as a number of outgoing transfers Edu is looking to complete, Schmeichel may adjust his prediction and include Arsenal in the conversation for a Premier League title challenge. Arsenal look to be on the right track under Arteta as fans continue to get excited over the start of the new season.
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