There was a brief moment last Friday, where the Arsenal squad looked very short indeed.
Aaron Ramsdale, Eddie Nketiah and Reiss Nelson had all been allowed to leave on deadline day, while Emile Smith Rowe had moved to Fulham earlier in the window. The English core that had given the Gunners depth at stages last season was gone. Things changed very quickly though.
Starting in goal the Gunners were in something of a bind on deadline day. They wanted to replace both Ramsdale and Karl Hein who had left earlier in the summer to join Real Valladolid on loan. The two players they were looking at to do this were Joan Garcia and Dan Bentley, but they ultimately ended up with neither.
With the pair deemed too expensive this summer, Arsenal instead pivoted to signing Bournemouth stopper Neto on a straight loan for the remainder of the season. With the 35-year-old Brazilian on the books the worries about cover in the goalkeeping department have now gone.
There is of course a bit of a risk when it comes to Neto. The Brazilian is cup-tied for Carabao Cup matches which means that summer signing Tommy Setford will step up to be on the bench for those games. The former Ajax man is highly rated, but asking him to come in for David Raya in those games could be a bit of a risk.
In defence Arsenal are stacked. It’s strange to think that in their first title charge a couple of seasons ago, an injury to William Saliba derailed things entirely. You get the feeling that if the same thing were to happen this time around, the Gunners would be able to cope much better.
Jurrien Timber has played at centre-back during pre-season, but is of course naturally a right-back where he can provide competition for Ben White, who himself is capable of playing at centre-back. Timber has established himself as the first choice at left-back across the past couple of games though where he is keeping Oleksandr Zinchenko and summer signing Riccardo Calafiori out of the team.
Calafiori has already shown his versatility in limited glimpses to feature in central defence where he can provide cover for Gabriel Magalhaes. Jakub Kiwior is also an option at left-back and centre-back. All that is before we even get to the high level of competence and versatility that Takehiro Tomiyasu provides when he’s fit. Kieran Tierney is still at the club too!
In defensive midfield, Arsenal once again look pretty strong. Thomas Partey and Jorginho only have one year remaining on their respective contracts, but the pair remain high quality options for now. Mikel Arteta views Declan Rice as the long-term solution in that position, and don’t be surprised to see him play as a six this season too.
For now though, he is playing as an eight where competition is provided by Mikel Merino. Merino had the rotten luck of suffering a shoulder injury on his first training session after arriving from Real Sociedad that looks set to sideline him for two months. Arsenal will be a little light in the middle until he returns, but once he is fit that position looks strong.
The right eight position is also a little sparse at the minute. Martin Odegaard is obviously first choice and is arguably the best player in the Premier League at the minute. If the Norwegian were to suffer an injury though, Arsenal would be stretched, particularly given that Fabio Vieira has joined Porto on loan.
Excitingly though, youngster Ethan Nwaneri looks set to be given some first team minutes this season and could provide cover for Odegaard in cup competitions. The Hale Ender can play in either of the eight positions, while fellow academy product Myles Lewis-Skelly is also an option in the role. If Arteta does want to opt for experience instead though, he could move Kai Havertz back from the centre forward position, while Leandro Trossard can shift in from the left wing.
You get the feeling Arteta would be reluctant to do that right now though given how well the pair are performing in those respective positions. Competition for places from Gabriel Jesus and Gabriel Martinelli is probably inspiring that to some extent.
The right wing is where Arsenal have always felt a little short of options beyond Bukayo Saka. The England international is up there with the best in the world in that role, but playing every minute of every game will surely catch up with him at some point. Nelson was not someone Arteta seemed to really trust to cover, which is why the 24-year-old was allowed to head out on loan to Fulham for the season.
In his place, Arsenal have brought in Raheem Sterling who finally solves the Saka conundrum. The 29-year-old is not a like-for-like Saka replacement, but he has starred on the right for club and country and can also pop up on the left, or even as a false nine where he played regularly for Manchester City.
Arteta has admitted it may take a while for Sterling to get up to speed. “We have to see him, speak to him (about) what he’s been doing and how he’s feeling about it and try to find quick wins to get him up to speed as quickly as possible and for him to understand what we are looking for from him in the dynamics of the team,” he said when asked about his deadline day arrival on Saturday. “We will use that time to do that and get him involved as soon as possible.”
But with the England international to call on, the Arsenal squad is starting to look pretty strong. If they’re able to get their midfielders back and available soon, then the Gunners look to have a group capable of challenging on multiple fronts. Arteta will be hoping it’s what’s required to win his first trophy in nearly five years.
Arsenal squad depth –
Goalkeeper – David Raya, Neto
Right-back – Ben White, Jurrien Timber, Takehiro Tomiyasu
Right centre-back – William Saliba, Jurrien Timber, Jakub Kiwior, Takehiro Tomiyasu, Ben White
Left centre-back – Gabriel, Riccardo Calafiori, Jakub Kiwior, Jurrien Timber
Left-back – Jurrien Timber, Riccardo Calafiori, Oleksandr Zinchenko, Takehiro Tomiyasu, Jakub Kiwior, Myles Lewis-Skelly
Defensive midfield – Thomas Partey, Jorginho, Declan Rice, Mikel Merino
Right eight – Martin Odegaard, Ethan Nwaneri, Kai Havertz, Mikel Merino
Left eight – Declan Rice, Mikel Merino, Kai Havertz, Ethan Nwaneri, Myles Lewis-Skelly
