Mikel Arteta has become a victim of his own success at Arsenal.
Since his arrival in December 2019, Arteta has transformed the club both on and off the pitch, restoring the Gunners’ ambition and identity after years of under achievement. But football moves at an unforgiving pace and your efforts are quickly forgotten if you have no silverware to show for it.
That is the danger the Spaniard now faces, with his biggest critics readily lurking to point the finger at him, should his side fall short of winning the Premier League for a third consecutive season. Yet, for all Arteta has achieved, some of his decisions with regards to transfers have contributed to Arsenal now sitting seven points behind league leaders Liverpool with just 13 games left to play.
The biggest failure of his decision-making is the Gunners’ current forward nightmare, where they are completely lacking in firepower and numbers following an injury crisis. And we now take a deeper look at some of the 42-year-old tactician’s biggest transfer mistakes over the years - the players he’s sold, signed and failed to land, that have led to this point.
Signing Willian
Willian is one of the worst Arsenal signings in recent memory, and not because he was signed from bitter rivals Chelsea. At a time when the Gunners were crying out for more attacking options, the club made the baffling decision to sign a 32-year-old Willian on a three-year deal worth a whopping £240,000-per-week.
The Brazilian scored just one goal for Arsenal in 37 appearances in the 2020/21 season, before deciding to tear up his contract and leave just one year into his deal. Willian himself revealed how Arteta had convinced him to join by saying he would be a part of a three-year plan - a stunning plan given that all around the Emirates Stadium could see Willian was well past his best.
Even more baffling was that, after leaving for Corinthians, Willian revealed how Arteta had wanted him to stay for another year. Willian’s free transfer, one of Arteta’s first deals as boss, would be just one of the manager’s strange decisions when it came to signing forwards.
Granit Xhaka’s departure
Arsenal narrowly missed out on the title to eventual Treble winners Manchester City in 2022/23, but proceeded to sell one of their best performers in Granit Xhaka that summer. As a veteran in the Arsenal dressing room, the Switzerland captain had enjoyed a renaissance, scoring nine and assisting seven in a more attacking role under Arteta.
Xhaka, who was entering the final year of his contract, understood that his involvement would be limited going forwards with Declan Rice’s arrival, and expressed his own need for a new challenge. But it soon became clear that the Gunners had made a mistake in letting him go for £21.4million and should have fought harder to keep him, as he played a pivotal role in Bayer Leverkusen completing an unbeaten domestic double in the 2023/24 season.
He clearly still had a lot more to offer in north London in terms of quality. And while the belief at the time was that Arsenal would upgrade, they have failed to do so despite splurging £65m on Kai Havertz and £31.6m on Mikel Merino - neither of whom have made the position their own.
Failing to sign a proper No. 9
Gabriel Jesus’ £45m signing from City in the summer of 2022 appeared to be a masterstroke at first, until repeated injuries derailed the Brazilian’s career. Arteta had decided to bring in Jesus over long-time target Alexander Isak from Real Sociedad - a decision all fans of Arsenal rue as the Newcastle forward now costs well over £100m.
Havertz, having failed to inspire as a left-central midfielder, was moved to the false nine position in the absence of Jesus, where he was more effective in the latter half of the 2023/24 season. Yet it was clear at the end of the campaign that Arsenal and then-sporting director Edu Gaspar needed to sign a world class striker - one that would add a clinical edge in their title pursuits.
They failed to do so, having been turned down by their number one target - Slovenian youngster Benjamin Sesko - who opted to sign a new deal with RB Leipzig. It meant Arteta started the current season with Merino and defender Riccardo Calafiori as his only outfield signings, leaving Arsenal considerably short of quality up front while their rivals only strengthened.
Losing two goal machines
Along with a failure to add reinforcements, Arteta’s confidence to start the new campaign with Havertz, not a traditional No. 9, and the injury-riddled Jesus, also blocked a pathway for some of their young talented forwards.
Talented Danish striker Mika Biereth was sold for just £4m last summer, believing that his “playing time was a long way off”. Having since left Sturm Graz for Monaco, the 22-year-old has scored seven in his first five games since January, leaving Arsenal supporters scratching their heads at how such a talent was allowed to leave N5.
Another stunning decision was the sudden departure of 17-year-old academy prospect Chido Obi-Martin in the same summer, who signed for rivals Manchester United having held similar concerns after netting 32 goals in 20 U18s matches. Arteta certainly could have made a greater effort to integrate either Biereth or Obi-Martin - players who may have added crucial goals this season in the absence of a fit first-team striker.
2024 summer window
Even ignoring the failure to sign a much-needed striker and allowing academy prospects to leave, the 2024 summer transfer window was undoubtedly a disaster. Edu sought to streamline the squad by offloading creative players such as Fabio Vieira, Emile Smith Rowe and Reiss Nelson.
But he and Arteta did not replace them, meaning Martin Odegaard was the only real central playmaker going into the season. That lack of creativity was all too evident when their captain missed two months of action through injury, resulting in crucial points being dropped in the first half of the season.
Instead of securing their main targets, an ageing Raheem Sterling was brought in late in the transfer window, effectively as a panic signing. Like Willian, he has looked a shadow of his former self, with the signing becoming synonymous with poor squad planning.
The signings of Merino and Calafiori, while adding greater depth and solidity to the squad, highlight Arteta’s greatest shortcomings as an Arsenal manager. Compared to the hundreds of millions spent by rivals City on forwards, Arteta’s only recent acquisitions have been Leandro Trossard, Jesus and Sterling on loan.
With that in mind, there will be a clear reason should Arteta fall short in the title race, having failed to add the required firepower to take his team to the next level.