Arsenal picked up their 14th FA Cup trophy at the start of August to salvage what was an otherwise unimpressive season.
The Gunners have had ample issues to sort out this summer from Pierre Emerick Aubameyang’s contract situation to the ongoing saga regarding Mesut Ozil.
Head coach Mikel Arteta has identified the areas he wants to strengthen this summer; centre back, defensive midfield and a creative midfielder with a loan extension for Dani Ceballos on the cards.
Willian has arrived on a free transfer after his contract with Chelsea expired, while extensions for David Luiz, Cedric Soares and Pablo Mari have indicated what Arteta wants to do with the defence next season.
Gabriel, the Brazilian defender from Lille will also sign shortly, but can Arteta spring a title challenge next season using the win treble tips which managers such as Pep Guardiola have adopted in the past.
What you can be sure of is that Arteta has the tools at his disposal to do something special with the Arsenal squad next season. There is no doubt that there are areas in the team that require strengthening, but the likes of Thomas Partey and Gabriel are exactly what the Gunners need.
A new deal for Aubameyang who guarantees a steady supply of goals, a solid young defender in Gabriel and impressive defensive midfielder in Partey could be enough to help Arsenal challenge for a major trophy next season.
Nobody is expecting it but no-one expected Arteta’s side to beat Manchester City and Chelsea on their way to lifting the FA Cup last season. The label of underdogs is exactly what the Spaniard wants as it relieves the pressure and gives him an opportunity to show what he can do on the global stage.
