FIVE KEY SUMMER PRINCIPLES FOR THE ARSENAL TRANSFER WINDOW
WHAT TO LOOK FOR AS YOU GORGE ON THE GOSSIP THIS SUMMER
Oh thank you, that’s so kind of you to say, happy transfer window season to one and all!
You know nothing gets my gears grinding harder than transfer season. It’s a time of great hope, of renewal, a dreamy haze of research, YouTube scouting, and largely disappointment.
… but this summer, we’re a serious club, with big ambitions, and an ownership group moving beyond the war chest stories of the 2010s right to the WE ARE GOING BIG phase of global domination.
We’ll see how things shake out over the next few months, but there are a few things we must remember about how Andrea Berta rocks so we can all be singing from the same page.
Optionality
The big pivot from the old guard to the new is that Andrea Berta doesn’t believe in the idea that you’re better off not spending than missing your target. His view is that you should have multiple targets on the go at the same time and you should use that variation to keep clubs guessing on fees. Some would say he does this to get the best price, but I would argue that outside Mosquera last summer, we largely paid the valuation or we overpaid. I think he does this to keep options open while the club assesses things like desire and agents. But probably the biggest advantage of having multiple players on the go is that if Madrid or United come steaming in, you have other places to put your cash. He also recognized that squad depth was more important than outright quality and that mindset tipped us over the line in the Premier League because the mass injury issues we had all season didn’t hurt us like it had done in the past.
Opportunism
I think there will likely be a part of the summer that is baked, but some of the summer will remain unplanned so the club can assess exciting options that occur when new managers, going into big clubs, make an assessment of who they want to keep and who they want to bin. José Mourinho at Madrid will most certainly make a splash by decapitating one or two stars. Iraola might bin some of last summer’s big moves to raise capital… like Alex Isak. You just don’t know. But Eberechi Eze was a last-minute trolley dash last year and I suspect being open to phone calls from the big agents, and making decisive moves, is why the big super agents like Berta.
New Media
Andrea Berta is probably the most progressive innovator in new media I’ve seen, globally. The Hand of Arsenal account has been a very shrewd way of Arsenal bypassing media spin and headline generators. Angsty fans are kept in the loop with regards to the targets, the details of the deals, and how things are progressing. I’ve never seen anything like it, but it prevents fans from being dragged into the world of random fake ITK accounts, and it gives clarity to what we’re looking at and how we’re moving.
Clarity of the rebuild
We also kind of know the shape of the summer already. David Ornstein and Miguel Delaney, the best informed journalists, have been signaling how the squad rebuild will be shaped.
We know there will be an attacking midfielder of sorts and Morgan Rogers is setting the tone for what that’ll look like. An all-action ball-carrying powerhouse with rich output.
We’ll be looking at some sort of forward who can play as a second striker or on the wings. That’ll look like an Álvarez or a Junior Kroupi. Two players that, according to Delaney, are attracting big interest from PSG this summer.
We know that the right back position is likely open, though I have heard there’s a chance Ben White stays on, particularly with that knee injury, and some of the very good performances at the tail end of the season.
We know there’s a strong likelihood that we’ll need to look at a new 8 and a 6.
Sales drive spaces
Andrea Berta has been known for finding gems, but he’s also been known for doing very good business on exits. Arsenal have been notoriously weak on this front, but at some point, you have to imagine that narrative changes because we’re, you know, Champions of England with the best coach in the world. These squad players took us all the way this season, how can there be a market for Anthony Gordon, but not Martinelli?
Players to keep an eye on this summer are the whole of the left side of midfield. Martin Odegaard, who had a strained relationship with Arteta at phases of this season. Martin Zubimendi who fell out of favour, but also, a man we know suffers with homesickness. Then there are other players who might just find suitors you didn’t expect. If Madrid come in with a huge number for injury-prone Calafiori, would the club opt to find someone more robust?
There are also big questions to be asked of our forward line. Kai has struggled with injuries, Gabi Jesus doesn’t have it anymore, and Viktor Gyokeres, despite a good final month of the season, trails in so many of the major numbers an Arsenal striker should be at the top of, it’s quite painful. How quickly does the new regime recognise errors in some of the moves we made last year? How ruthless will they actually be? Noting that the only signing of last summer that made the Champions League final starting 11 was Mosquera, who was in for an injured Jurrien Timber.
These are the 4 grounding principles I’m looking at this summer. Should be an interesting one. We have to navigate a hectic one because the World Cup will be starting very soon and that’ll block a lot of the best players from talking. Will Berta get deals done fast or will we fight with everyone at the back end of the tournament?
Plenty to think about. But, while you’re mulling those items — Jacob managed to snag the mighty Tim Stillman, one of the best thinkers on Arsenal for 20 odd years, for an excellent episode of The Dugout that is free for your ears right now. Check it out ad free now! x