Arsenal made great strides during the 2021/22 season, but let Champions League qualification slip away from them down the final stretch.
The Gunners nevertheless showed a spirit, togetherness and most importantly the makings of a good football team for the first time since the Arsene Wenger era.
But Mikel Arteta’s side can’t afford to rest on their laurels and know they’ll have to be even better next year if they’re to break back into the top four.
With the help of some summer reinforcements, here’s how Arsenal could line up for the 2022/23 season.
Following an impressive debut season in north London, Aaron Ramsdale is firmly the Gunners’ first-choice between the sticks.
That means that the future of Bernd Leno is in doubt, with the Germany international expected to depart in search of first-team football.
Interestingly, YouTuber and goalkeeper Ben Foster has admitted he would be open to becoming Ramsdale’s deputy despite being a Tottenham fan.
One of Arsenal’s biggest improvements last season came at the back, with Ben White and Gabriel forming a solid partnership in the heart of defence.
Rob Holding will remain cover at centre-back but Pablo Mari is likely to move on.
At full-back, Takehiro Tomiyasu and Kieran Tierney were impressive when available, but both of their seasons were hampered by injuries and the Gunners could do with strengthening their depth in those areas.
Bologna and Scotland defender Aaron Hickey is of interest to Arsenal, while they are also expected to keep Cedric around despite a wobbly end to the season. Nuno Tavares looked raw when thrown into the spotlight and could do with a loan.
Listen now to The Chronicles of a Gooner, 90min’s Arsenal podcast. Each week, Harry Symeou discusses everything going in in the world of the Gunners.
Thomas Partey proved to be a revelation in midfield during the opening months of his second season in north London, but struggled to stay fit and Arsenal need further depth in his position.
Granit Xhaka finally became a dependable figure in the middle of the park, while Mohamed Elneny turned out to be a decent squad option and has signed a new one-year deal at the Emirates.
Youri Tielemans is of interest to Arsenal and would provide one thing their current midfielders don’t really have in abundance – goals. Meanwhile, Ruben Neves is looking to leave Wolves and would provide an upgrade on Xhaka should the north Londoners pursue a deal for him.
Albert Sambi Lokonga may depart on loan should further players block his path into the starting lineup, while Martin Odegaard could be named club captain.
Arsenal’s biggest problems recently have come up top – they don’t score enough goals.
Bukayo Saka (12), Emile Smith Rowe (11) and Eddie Nketiah (10) were their leading scorers in all competitions last season. While all markedly improved and have proven to be decent options in their own right, they need added competition.
Manchester City forward Gabriel Jesus is of concrete interest to Arsenal, though the Premier League champions are still trying to convince the Brazilian to stay at the Etihad.
The pipedream for Gooners is a reunion with Serge Gnabry, though several other teams would be ahead in the queue to sign him should he leave Bayern Munich.
Victor Osimhen and Tammy Abraham are on Arsenal’s radar but they would likely have to pay a club-record fee in order to get them out of Serie A, while the Gunners’ current record signing Nicolas Pepe is likely to be available for around £25m, roughly £50m less than what was paid for him back in 2019.
Elsewhere, Gabriel Martinelli has taken the number 11 shirt for the new season, but club captain Alexandre Lacazette is set to leave following the expiration of his contract (vacating the number nine shirt in the process).
