Arsenal 2023/24 - Have bottled the Champions League and are Bottling the League

[horsechoker]

So what does next season have in store for the arses?

Havertz in, Rice on the verge, Champions League

Can they challenge city or will their season be done by April?

 

[Il_Cecchino]

Who play in midfield together with Rice? Arsenal has only Partey (maybe: they want to sell him) and Jorginho. The midfield is the weak point. They needed to buy at least another top midfielder, not spend 70m for Havertz (another attacking midfield after Odegaard, Smith Rowe, Viera) and 45m for Timber (similar to Ben White).

 

[tinfish]

So what does next season have in store for the arses?

Havertz in, Rice on the verge, Champions League

Can they challenge city or will their season be done by April?

nope, expect city to win again. The league is done whist pep remains, it’s the new Bundesliga.

at the very least it would be nice to have some sort of title challenge, probably with Liverpool to keep things interesting.

I have good faith Arsenal quality will shine through and people this season will start to realise we are a good team now. However we still need to clear out the deadwood and get a few more signings for depth.
If Xhaka and partey leaves, we need another MF at the very least.

 

[Solius]

Quoting this when Havertz flops.

 

[ShinjiNinja26]

I expect Arsenal to drop off a bit this season. They’ll be in the top 4 race as oppose to challenging City for the title.

 

[Andy_Cole]

So what does next season have in store for the arses?

Havertz in, Rice on the verge, Champions League

Can they challenge city or will their season be done by April?

Almost £200m and I don’t think they have improved that much.

 

[SilentWitness]

4W 3D and 3L in their last 10 league games compared to 9W and 1L in their first league games last season. I feel like they'll probably be somewhere in the middle of that at the start. 6 or 7 wins. It feels like a formality that City will win the league again but it could be a very contested season in terms of 2nd place.

 

[Raw]

Expectation must be to win something now after all they've spent.

 

[adexkola]

Expectation must be to win something now after all they've spent.

Any trophy/cup? Like the Carabao Cup?

 

[Edwards6]

Almost £200m and I don’t think they have improved that much.

If they sell Partey and Xhaka as reported they've spent all that money and made the midfield worse

 

[Raw]

Any trophy/cup? Like the Carabao Cup?

Probably more like an FA Cup at least. Arteta's already won them a trophy so there isn't that pressure to win anything where even the League Cup would do.

 

[Mogget]

Quoting this when Havertz flops.

You didn't quote anything

Am I missing a classic caf meme

 

[Solius]

You didn't quote anything

Am I missing a classic caf meme

As in I'll quote my own post about said flopping when the flopping occurs.

 

[mctrials23]

They outperformed their expected points in the first half of the season by quite a bit and eventually ran out of steam. I don't see them coming close to City this season honestly. They will make top 4 because they are a good team that works really hard but I can't see a title challenge. How long can they keep spending big only to fall short as well I wonder?

 

[crossy1686]

They'll do worse than last season. That defence and GK are still a massive issue.

 

[Hakara]

Going to be nice to possibly face them in the champions league again, I think Gnabry is excited

 

[Red Star One]

22/23 - 84 points
21/22 - 69 points
20/21 - 61 points
19/20 - 56 points

I say it's time for them to return to the mean in the league. Can't see them breaking 80 points this season, will be surprised if they get more than 75.

They're lucky they've barely scrapped pot 2 in the CL draw, otherwise I'd fancy Arteta to crash out already in the group stage. I guess they'll get relatively easy group and make it to the Ro16, QF at best.

 

[JuriM]

22/23 - 84 points
21/22 - 69 points
20/21 - 61 points
19/20 - 56 points

I say it's time for them to return to the mean in the league. Can't see them breaking 80 points this season, will be surprised if they get more than 75.

They're lucky they've barely scrapped pot 2 in the CL draw, otherwise I'd fancy Arteta to crash out already in the group stage. I guess they'll get relatively easy group and make it to the Ro16, QF at best.

I am amazed how everyone is underrating Arsenal so fricking hard - it's like they had lost their main 3 players who brought them the 84 points season already or smth. Instead, they are adding depth and quality to the squad.

 

[horsechoker]

Going to be nice to possibly face them in the champions league again, I think Gnabry is excited

When Kane sends them out

 

[Bebestation]

Soon as they signed Jorginho I knew they weren’t going to win the league.

They can’t be messing with players like that if they have ambition.

Same thing happened a few years back the moment Liverpool signed Thiago.

They have never been the same again.

 

[LawCharltonBest]

Spent loads but I personally think they've made brilliant signings which will really improve and compliment their squad.

Havertz has stagnated but there is some player in there for Arteta to unlock

I'd say their strongest XI is definitely better than ours at this point.

 

[Rajiztar]

Rice still dont get the hype of 100 mn + player. He played for england and west ham in his senior career that never dominantly played against any decent side.

Well havertz i want to thank arsenal for solving the issue of him.

 

[ShinjiNinja26]

Soon as they signed Jorginho I knew they weren’t going to win the league.

They can’t be messing with players like that if they have ambition.

Same thing happened a few years back the moment Liverpool signed Thiago.

They have never been the same again.

They’ve got a habit of signing Chelsea’s cast offs. Cech, Luiz, Jorginho and now spunking silly money on Havertz.

 

[Egalitard]

Expectation must be to win something now after all they've spent.

Yes, good, that's what it's all about.

 

[Golden Nugget]

I rate Rice. He’s overpriced, but I think he will be a good fit for Arsenal.

Havertz on the other hand, I don’t rate. Not sure what Arteta sees in him and the price is excessive for a rotation option.

I think they’ll still be top 4 next season, but they won’t be challenging like they were this season

 

[Lecland07]

I think they still need to have a goal scorer who is more reliable.

They also need a centre back as Holding is crap.

They might be able to sustain a challenge until the last month then.

Rice is a good signing, but I have no idea why they signed Havertz.

 

[Egalitard]

I think they still need to have a goal scorer who is more reliable.

They also need a centre back as Holding is crap.

They might be able to sustain a challenge until the last month then.

Rice is a good signing, but I have no idea why they signed Havertz.

Looks quite likely that Jurrien Timber will be signing in the next couple of days. It was both Saliba and Tomiyasu getting injured in the same game that killed us in the end. Timber's presence will mean White can tuck inside (and hopefully Tomiyasu will have a less injury-hit season).

I think Holding will be sold.

 

[WeePat]

Looks quite likely that Jurrien Timber will be signing in the next couple of days. It was both Saliba and Tomiyasu getting injured in the same game that killed us in the end. Timber's presence will mean White can tuck inside (and hopefully Tomiyasu will have a less injury-hit season).

I think Holding will be sold.

Won't Timber outright replace White in the team? He's a far better RB. White would be excellent depth for CB and RB though.

 

[maniak]

I'm looking forward to that Bayern tie in CL second round

City will win the league, so I guess top 4 and a decent CL run is the best we can hope for.

 

[ThierryHenry14]

So far the summer transfer is just looking for like for like replacement for Xhaka, Partey, and Holding. Not alot has been done to improve the quality of the squad depth. The team still has no back up/competitor for Saka.

 

[macheda14]

Won't Timber outright replace White in the team? He's a far better RB. White would be excellent depth for CB and RB though.

I rate white higher than Gabriel at CB to be honest.

 

[ThierryHenry14]

Won't Timber outright replace White in the team? He's a far better RB. White would be excellent depth for CB and RB though.

Everyone has to earn his place.

 

[FootyGirl88]

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[ThierryHenry14]

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It is just the investment from the owner. Arsenal itself doesn't generate enough revenue to support these transfers. The idea my guess is with these investment hopefully can bring Arsenal back in to CL consistently then improve the income. Spurs also has similar wage bill and even larger revenue than Arsenal in the past couple year.

 

[FeelingDangerous]

Exactly the opposite, actually. The Kroenkes are reluctant to invest their own capital, their business model has and remains to reinvest revenue generated by the club. Why we’re able to splurge, in relative terms, this season in particular is due to the following:

• Wage savings. We’ve removed a lot of deadwood over the preceding months and years to the point we’re c.£100m+ less than our rivals wage bill. Thats the principle driver for our healthy transfer budget. We’ve removed high earners in Ozil and Aubameyang and replaced them with comparatively cheaper alternatives.
• Adidas renewal – we received a sizeable advance for our renewal, which was taken a year in advance.
• Champions League qualification – Besides the money coming in directly from the competition, I believe our qualification had an aggregate multiplier on other commercial deals. So its pushing revenue up across the board.
• Television Deal – Finishing second in a performance tiered payout has been hugely beneficial. The TV deals are hugely lucrative as everyone knows and whilst there isn’t much between first, second, third etc it’s a massive source of income if you’re willing to reinvest it.

I believe we will need to generate some additional revenue through player sales to satisfy our books, but its no tight run thing and we’re not at the mercy of the market. We’d be in a manageable position regardless of outgoings, but the appetite seems to be to further invest in the squad which will need some tit-for-tat.

 

[Josep Dowling]

I'm guessing it's another season where they spend a fortune but it will go unnoticed. Then they will be treated as underdogs.

 

[ThierryHenry14]

Exactly the opposite, actually. The Kroenkes are reluctant to invest their own capital, their business model has and remains to reinvest revenue generated by the club. Why we’re able to splurge, in relative terms, this season in particular is due to the following:

Stan provided loan to arsenal with 0.5% interest rate.

https://www.profitsontarget.com/articles/arsenal-the-kse-loan
https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/transfer-news/kroenke-arsenal-loan-transfer-window-24130339

"Where did the money come from?

• So how does a club like Arsenal, who are constantly embattled with trying to source capital to fund transfers, manage to cough up £150m or more to repay this debt? The answer lies in the club’s ownership structure.
• Arsenal is effectively owned by Stan Kroenke, through the Kroenke Sports & Entertainment company (KSE). As the owner, Mr. Kroenke has likely decided that it would be more beneficial for Arsenal to owe the stadium debt to him and his company, and not to the previous bondholders.
• So in essence, Arsenal’s owner has paid off a large portion of the club’s external debt. But this debt has not been waived entirely for Arsenal, and the payout has not been funded through owner provided equity capital. As a result, Arsenal will still owe more than £150m in debt, but rather to KSE as opposed to other external parties."

This is the investment of their own capital, otherwise where the money comes from? Spurs has similar wage bill and new stadium, just like Arsenal, with more CL money than Arsenal in the past 5 years. Spurs also has more revenue than Arsenal. This whole Arteta project is bankrolled by the owner.

https://www2.deloitte.com/rs/en/pages/about-deloitte/articles/football-money-league-2023.html

 

[daveskimufc]

It feels like these signings have been made for the fans rather than to aid their best 11.

They need a mf to sit next to a partey/rice (much like we did) and a striker, not another CAM in havertz, where will havertz even play in their 11, replacing odegaard? No, Saka? no.

But the fans can now no longer say the club won't spend money

 

[Chief123]

Half way through the season they’ll be delighted with top 4. Won’t be anywhere near title race.

 

[BlueMoonOutcast]

Arteta has had what three/four years now? Plus 600m in transfers? The pressure to win has to be huge by now.