Arsenal were devastated to not lift any silverware in 2025, and the club helped Declan Rice realise his vision after calling for change ahead of the transfer window
Declan Rice's wish for Arsenal to get busy in the summer transfer window was granted by the club following his comments calling for fresh blood. And the Gunners responded in a big way after shelling out around £250million on new signings.
The Gunners were mightily disappointed to finish a fifth straight season without any major silverware. Mikel Arteta won the FA Cup in his first season at the helm, mere months after taking charge at the Emirates, but he hasn't managed to add to his trophy cabinet since then.
Last season saw Arsenal reach the semi-finals of the Champions League and League Cup, as well as finishing second in the Premier League for a third straight year. And after two campaigns in north London, Rice perhaps hinted at some discontent within the squad as he voiced his belief investment was needed in the transfer market.
"Hopefully, we strengthen in the summer, sign more players because we are probably gonna lose a few as well," said the England midfielder in mid-May, not long after Arsenal had been knocked out of the Champions League semi-finals by eventual champions PSG.
"We are gonna come back next year and be ready, be stronger and even more hungry to win something for this club. That’s what we all want."
Owner Stan Kroenke responded by backing Arteta's vision with a huge outlay over the summer months. That splurge included the additions of Viktor Gyokeres, Eberechi Eze and Martin Zubimendi for a combined initial outlay of around £170m.
Winger Noni Madueke joined from Chelsea for another £48.5m up front, while defender Cristhian Mosquera was a more modest purchase from Villarreal for an initial £13m. The same can be said for Christian Norgaard, a £10m buy from Brentford, while Piero Hincapie has joined on loan from Bayer Leverkusen, with an option to make the move permanent for £45m.
As Rice predicted, there were also changes made through departures as Thomas Partey, Jorginho, Kieran Tierney and Takehiro Tomiyasu were each released. Nuno Tavares, Marquinhos and Albert Sambi Lokonga were the only players sold permanently, though they only brought in a meagre sum of around £10m combined.
On the theme of those surplus to requirements, Arteta decided not to keep around the likes of Jakub Kiwior, Reiss Nelson, Oleksandr Zinchenko and Fabio Vieira. They each left the club on season-long loan deals, with some facing stronger prospects back in north London than others.
Gyokeres and Zubimendi have already cemented their places in the new Arsenal XI and have started every Premier League game for their club so far this season. Madueke has also entered the manager's plans after starting their last two outings, while 15-year-old gem Max Dowman is the latest talent with first-team potential to step off Arsenal's conveyor belt.
That's without mentioning £60m man Eze, who came off the bench to make his Arsenal debut in the recent 1-0 defeat at Liverpool. All that adds up to around half of the team changing compared to the end of last term, with defence being the area that has managed to go without much alteration.
The Gunners have already lost some pace in the league title race following that slim defeat at Anfield prior to the international break. However, Arteta will hope to continue gelling his new assortment when Arsenal resume their campaign against Nottingham Forest on Saturday.