Despite not playing, Arsenal had a fantastic weekend in terms of their bid to qualify for next season's Champions League.
West Ham dropped points against out form Leicester, while Manchester United drew with unfavoured Southampton, and to put the cherry on the cake local rivals Tottenham succumbed to a disaapointing 2-0 victory against Wolves.
Just three days prior the Gunners had done their bit to pressure on their rivals by claiming a crucial victory over Bruno Lage's side despite being reduced to ten men after Gabriel Martinelli 's dismissal.
The celebrations on full time at Molineux have drawn criticism from many, with Ruben Neves saying Arsenal celebrated as though they "had won the league." In reality though, the joy at the three points was so intense because Mikel Arteta 's men know that a chance to finish in this season's top four is well and truly on.
The Spaniard has been keen to stop his players from getting too carried away as the chance to dine at European football's top table for the first time in half a decade beckons.
“You don’t know how many points we’re going to need to get to the objectives," the Spaniard said after last Thursday's win. "But, as well, we need to look at ourselves and focus on what we’re doing and go game by game because we can’t look too far ahead."
However, football.london is going to indulge a bit of fanciful thinking and look forward here to what will happen if Arsenal qualify for next season's Champions League.
Loanees return
One thing that has made this season particularly unusual from an Arsenal perspective is the lack of European football at the Emirates.
For the first time in 25 years the Gunners failed to qualify for contintental competition last season, and as a result have been fighting on three fronts this season rather than four.
This has led them to significantly reduce their squad size with Willian, Joe Willock, Hector Bellerin, Reiss Nelson, Runar Alex Runarsson, Dani Ceballos, Mat Ryan, David Luiz, Pablo Mari, Sead Kolasinac, Calum Chambers, Ainsley Maitland-Niles and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang all having departed in one way or another after bieng part of the first team group last season.
Should Arsenal reach next season's Champions League then it will undoubtedly require them to have a bigger squad in order to compete on multiple fronts.
As a result it's likely that we'll see several loanees return to North London to be part of Mikel Arteta's first team.
The likes of Matteo Guendouzi, Dinos Mavropanos and Lucas Torreira are unlikely to be welcomed back regardless, but there could be a chance for William Saliba and Flo Balogun to play a part in the senior set up on a consistent basis next campaign.
New signings
One of the biggest positives about being in the Champions League is the amount of pulling power it afford you when you are in the transfer market.
Most recently Arsenal have seen when trying to convince players like Dusan Vlahovic to come to the Emirates how tricky it can be to acquire elite talent without being in elite competition.
Speaking earlier this month Mikel Arteta admitted that having this is a factor would help the club's budget and their chances of obtaining the very best in the game.
"Everything helps," the Spaniard said.
"The financial position is going to determine how good we are with the team performances, where we finish and then that will help our sponsorship, our marketing, our ticketing sales, it’s just a ball that roles constantly."
The Gunners are expected to be in the market next summer in at least two key positions, after already securing an agreement to bring in goalkeeper Matt Turner from New England Revolution.
Centre forward is the first of these, with Alexandre Lacazette and Eddie Nketiah both likely depart when their contracts expire.
Meanwhile central midfield will be an important position to recruit in as they are set to lose both Ainsley Maitland-Niles and Mohamed Elneny on a permanent basis.
Having Champions League football will ensure those who Edu is able to bring in to the Emirates are of a top level.
Contract extensions for key youngsters
As much as bringing in players is important for Arsenal, making sure they hold on to some of their key talents is key too.
This was an approach that was prioritised last summer as the Gunners moved to secure contract extensions for Flo Balogun, Emile Smith Rowe, Kieran Tierney and Arthur Okonkwo, and you can expect the same this time around.
Gabriel Martinelli and Bukayo Saka both only signed new contracts at the Emirates in the summer of 2020, but after impressing so much this season, there are plenty of big names sniffing around the young pair.
If Arsenal find themselves in the Champions League, pitching to both wide men that staying in North London will be the best thing for their futures will surely be much easier.
If Mikel Arteta's project is to develop forward at a rapid pace, then keeping those two is essential, and football.london understands it is very high on Edu's to do list for the coming months.
