Arsenal may have spent more than £120million already this summer, but manager Mikel Arteta has stressed a desire to increase that tally before the transfer window closes.
The Gunners have made five signings so far, including the arrival of Manchester City duo Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko for a combined £75million. Despite also having strengthened his midfield options with the purchase of Fabio Vieira and Marquinhos, as well as goalkeeper Matt Turner, Arteta is still on the lookout for further reinforcements.
Speaking after watching his side record an impressive 4-0 friendly win over London rivals Chelsea in Florida in their latest pre-season outing, Arteta said: "You can see we are still a little bit short in some positions for the way that we want to play but it is something that we are trying to address.
"We have increased the quality of the team and the level of the squad is something that we want to keep raising."
Jesus, Martin Odegaard, Bukayo Saka and Albert Sambi Lokonga all netted as the Gunners ramped up preparations for the new campaign, which sees them travel to Crystal Palace in the Premier League curtain-raiser on August 5.
The win over Chelsea saw Zinchenko make his first outing since completing a move from champions City last week. He played 45 minutes and Arteta was pleased with what the Ukranian international showed.
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He added: "He was desperate to play and I knew that. It was a maximum 45 minutes but you could see straight away he was comfortable. He understands everything that I want, he understands the process and I thought he had a really good game."
The move to the Emirates Stadium represents a dream come true for Zinchenko, who grew up supporting the Gunners.
Speaking after his unveiling, the 25-year-old said: "I would like to say this is a boyhood dream come true, because I was a massive fan when I was a kid. [When] Thierry Henry and Cesc Fabregas [were] playing here, I was just enjoying watching those games, that Arsenal. Obviously I started to love this club, so I am so excited and I cannot wait to play.
"It’s unbelievable, honestly, like I said, it’s a dream come true and since I was a kid I couldn’t even dream about it, but now it’s time, so I’m so happy.
"I am here to achieve big things and I hope we can win some titles, and I hope we are going to fight for every title in which we are going to be involved. Even from the last season, I was watching Arsenal's games and I could smell it's coming, you know? The team is growing up so quickly and I think it's time. It's time to do our best and to achieve something big."
