Despite some recent struggles, Arsenal have enjoyed an excellent 2022/23 campaign.
Mikel Arteta's side missed out on UEFA Champions League qualification last season, finishing fifth as local rivals Tottenham Hotspur pipped them to a fourth-placed finish. Fast forward 12 months and the Gunners can guarantee at least a second-placed finish if they are able to beat Newcastle United this weekend.
It is an impressive achievement for the north Londoners, who have the second-youngest squad in the Premier League, with Arteta also being the second-youngest manager in the English top flight. Yet there is a general consensus between a considerable amount of fans and pundits that they will decline next season.
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There seems to be an expectation that the likes of Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester United will greatly improve this summer, with the latter the closest to Arsenal in the table, currently 15 points behind the Gunners, who have played two extra matches than Erik ten Hag's men. But due to financial fair play rules, United's summer transfer budget is set to be about £100million, as per The Athletic.
Of course, this seems like a lot of money but in the grand scheme of things, that sum makes it much harder for the Red Devils to considerably close the gap between them and Arsenal. The Red Devils spent £214 million in last summer's transfer window, as per Transfermarkt and they still have a number of holes in their squad, particularly at centre-midfield and centre-forward.
The Gunners are also keen to strengthen their squad in the transfer market this summer. football.london understands that Arteta wants to bolster his midfield options at the end of the current campaign and West Ham United captain Declan Rice is at the top of the Spaniard's wishlist.
Rice has made it no secret of his willingness to play in the Champions League sooner rather than later and there is optimism a deal can be done despite the club's transfer policy of not being dragged into a bidding war, nor overpaying for players. “One hundred per cent I want to play in the Champions League,” he said in November 2022.
“For the last two or three years I’ve been saying that. I’ve been playing consistently well for my club and I feel like I really want to keep pushing.
"I see my friends here who are playing Champions League and for big trophies. You only get one career and at the end you want to look back at what you’ve won and the biggest games you’ve played in.”
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