Squad Analysis 2022/23

[Dutch D]

Some thoughts about our current squad (including Zinchencko):
* RB: With Tomiyasu injured (again) I'm worried about this position. At the beginning of the window I wanted Mazraoui, but it was clear he was going to Bayern. I don't want us to rely on Cedric all season, I would rather use a youth prospect and give him room to grow/make mistakes than use a finished Cedric.
* LB: Really happy with Zinchencko. Especially as we can't rely on Tierney. I would sell Tierney if an offer came in, but I doubt it will. Get rid of Tavares.
* CB: Really happy Saliba is back and integrated, kind of against my expectations to be honest. Means we have three very solid options. I do think we miss a solid fourth option (don't rate Holding one bit), which ideally is a young player we can give plenty of time in cups and Europe to develop. Walters seems a bit young for that role. A Colwell-level talent would be great, but I doubt Chelsea would sell to us.
* DM: The position I worry about the most. Partey is world class, but there are obvious question marks around him and he can't seem to stay fit. Lokonga is not yet at the level to trust him as a deputy. I've made peace with the fact that Elneny is not leaving but he should be third choice. Have to get rid of Torreira to free some funds.
* LCM: Second position I worry a lot about, but I'm uncertain what the situation is. Does Vieira fit in here alongside Ødegaard? Seems lightweight. Definitely need an upgrade on Xhaka here. Not sure who to target. Lokonga can deputise, so we can sell Xhaka. If they can't find anyone they can buy a winger and put Saka here.
RCM: Solid cover for this position, plenty of options. Assuming Vieira deputises here and for Saka.
LW: I feel like we have the bodies with Martinelli and Smith-Rowe, but unless Martinelli steps it up this season we're a little bit light in terms of quality here. I'm conflicted on this one, because I like both players but if we're brutally honest they aren't up to CL standard (yet).
RW: Expecting Arteta would never use Pepe, so discounting him we're a little light in terms of quality. Saka is arguably our best player, but there is no solid cover. Perhaps Marquinhos can be that guy, but I thought he was bought more for the longer term and would be loaned out. With Hutchinson gone, he could get a chance. Vieira can be cover as well. Nelson should be sold.
ST: Incredibly happy with our signing here. Massive improvement over Lacazette. It's hard to overstate how much Lacazette cost us last season. This signing alone has me confident we can challenge for top 4 next season. Have a sneaking suspicion Nketiah will do well this season as well. No need to buy a squad level player to be back-up (I am generally against 'squad signings').

 

[ThlRama]

I feel like we're once again loaded with AMs/wide attackers. How did we do that without Arsène, is that an eternal curse? The positions can be increased from the three they would be in the 4-2-3-1 to four, if we go 4-1-4-1 (or 4-3-3 with AMs instead of CMs), but we still have too many. How did we managed to mess this up and end up with Nelson, Marquinhos, Pepe, Martinelli, Vieira, Rowe, Ødegaard, Niles, and Saka, that is 9 players for 4 positions max? We need to sell at least two, if not three or four of them. I hope three of them won't be here come September, and we still need to find playing time for 4 CM/DMs if only Torreira leaves from our MF (currently 13 players for 5 positions in total.)

P.S.: Don't judge the avatar, I hadn't logged in for a long time and I'm slightly on the busy side to do anything about that right now.

 

[Baki]

How does this look potentially?

View attachment 7439

Title winning squad in my opinion. Especially with Zichenko in the sub.

 

[1macca1]

I'd be surprised if any more serious squad players were brought in, and I'm ok with that.
I think there's a talented first XI and pretty good bench players at the club.
-----Ramsdale
Tomi-White-Gabi-Tierney
-----Partey-Zinchenko
----------Ødegaard
Saka-----------Martinelli
--------Jesus

Leno- Saliba- Xhaka- Viera- Smith-rowe - Nketiah

Happy days

 

[DJ_Markstar]

Come on bro Partey is not world class even when fit, he's the right type of player for sure but miles below the likes of Rodri and Fabinho @Dutch D

more or less agree with the rest.

 

[UnitedBeard]

Where did clubs stand last season?​

Ahead of the 2022-23 campaign, The Athletic looked at where each side stood last season.

State of Premier League clubs' squads

View attachment 7376

Arsenal HG is less than Man City is very shocking indeed. Not surprised with Wolves, their homegrown is basically Portugal.

 

[Hunta]

Arsenal HG is less than Man City is very shocking indeed. Not surprised with Wolves, their homegrown is basically Portugal.

That list is from last season when most of our squad didn’t need registering as HG or NHG.

ESR, Nelson, Nketiah, AMN, White, Ramsdale, Holding and Bellerin are all HG from this season.

Saka, Saliba, Martinelli and Okonkwo will be from 23/24 too.

 

[Taylor Gang Gunners]

Our squad is shaping up nicely. I think we need a RB, CM and LW and a few need to leave.

If AMN is willing to knuckle down and commit to being a RB for us then we won’t need a RB so much. Marquinhos looks like he’s got a bit but not sure he’s a legitimate wide option just yet.

I really like Harvey Barnes at Leicester. We should test Leicester’s resolve for him IMO. I’ve not seen enough of Gakpo and it was a blow missing out on Raphinha.

For CM I don’t want Tielemans. I’ll begrudgingly accept him for a smallish fee but I don’t think he improves us enough. I’d love a Milinkovic-Savic or a Fabian Ruiz. Both are statement signings like Jesus was.

 

[Macho]

No Raphinha, no problem? At least Arsenal now have competition and variation on wing

Arsenal missed out on Raphinha and though some fans may still want a new winger, the team actually has strength on both sides

theathletic.com

Spoiler: No Raphinha, no problem? At least Arsenal now have competition and variation on wing

By Art de Roché
Jul 29, 2022

A question being asked of Arsenal last season was whether Emile Smith Rowe or Gabriel Martinelli would start on the left flank. Smith Rowe had a strong first half of the campaign, scoring eight league goals by New Year’s Day. Minor injuries in the winter months resulted in him being dropped to the bench. At that point, Martinelli stepped up with three goals and two assists. Suddenly, Mikel Arteta had a selection dilemma.

Arsenal drove most of their attacks through the wide areas at that time. Bukayo Saka carried the bulk of that responsibility on the other side, but the amount of football Saka and Smith Rowe played meant rotation was a necessity — even if Arsenal were playing just one game a week.

Saka was benched in December for the 3-2 defeat at Manchester United. It was also Smith Rowe’s last start until January 23 against Burnley. Heading into a season with Europa League fixtures and a truncated pre-World Cup Premier League schedule makes the need for competition in these areas even more important.

Just as important as competition is variation. That has been a theme of Arsenal’s summer, most notably in the signing of Oleksandr Zinchenko, who can play left-back and in midfield, but it is integral to Arsenal in those wide attacking areas, too.

Last season, it became clear that Smith Rowe and Martinelli served different purposes on that left flank. Smith Rowe played when Arsenal wanted a playmaker in deeper areas — his performance against Aston Villa away is an example of that. Martinelli tended to play when Arsenal needed a wide forward.

Are Saka and Martinelli the answer to Arsenal’s wide positions this season? (Photo: Joe Giddens/PA Images via Getty Images)

Having those different approaches last season was helpful, although Arteta chose them for the wrong occasions at times, such as at Newcastle away. Having something similar on both wings in 2022-23 — when Premier League teams can use five substitutes — is likely why technical director Edu made his interest in Raphinha known before the Brazilian joined Barcelona. Arsenal have numbers in those areas now, but the Raphinha interest shows there was a willingness to upgrade if possible.

Marquinhos’ arrival and sporadic use in pre-season suggests he will fill in as a rotation option. It is also understood that Reiss Nelson may get chances to impress Arteta, although it is difficult to see him starting games before the Europa League group stages begin.

There is still just over a month to establish clarity about Nicolas Pepe’s future after he played second fiddle to Bukayo Saka last season, but even if Arsenal fail to offload and recruit, they have another option to use from the right.

Saka is comfortable playing whichever role is needed on that right wing. If he is asked to hug the touchline and burst into the final third, he can do it. If he needs to drift further infield to create, he can do that, too. The 20-year-old appeared in all 38 league games last season, but that will not be realistic in the upcoming season — especially with the World Cup in December.

While Fabio Vieira is primarily viewed as a No 10 by Arsenal, he broke into Porto’s first team as a wide playmaker. The Portugal Under-21 captain spent much of the 2019-20 season playing off the right for Porto B and was used there in a 4-4-2 when promoted to the first team after the first lockdown of 2020.

Without the presence of a No 10, he often started in a wide position before drifting inside. This happened on his second appearance off the bench against Boavista, with Porto’s shape clear from the start of the passage of play.

Vieira didn’t win the header from the long ball, but the second ball was played back into his path and he drove infield.

From there, he played in Moussa Marega to claim his first assist in senior football.

This theme continued throughout his early cameos off the bench, before he made his first senior start in a 2-0 win over Sporting Lisbon.

Twenty years old at the time, he didn’t register a goal or assist in the game but still managed to impact proceedings. Eleven minutes in, he drifted out to the right wing to give his right-back a passing option.

Turning as he received the ball, he then clipped it into the highlighted area for Luis Diaz to chase.

The Colombian, who was playing on the left wing, got into the box and bundled the ball in, but the goal was ruled out for handball.

Later in the game, Vieira latched onto a loose clearance and rattled the crossbar with a volley, but that search for Diaz happened more frequently.

Considering how Arsenal used their wide players last season, that may lend itself to Vieira filling in on the right as a mirror image of Smith Rowe when Saka needs resting.

When Arsenal were at their creative best after moving to the Emirates, it was not uncommon for players like Tomas Rosicky, Samir Nasri, Alexander Hleb or Andrey Arshavin to operate in both wide and central areas. Should Arteta want to flood his midfield with technicians, as Arsène Wenger often did, Vieira (like Smith Rowe and Ødegaard) should help, whether he is deployed centrally or wide.

Having different ways of attacking teams is key. Arsenal may already have the numbers to do that in wide areas, but they must decide whether they are content with their options for the start of the campaign. If they are, they can prioritise other positions. If not, they might choose to upgrade.

A week away from the new season beginning, they won’t be too worried about wide players, but quality in depth in central midfield or up front may still need addressing.

 

[Makingtrax]

One of the best squads in the league behind City. Our squad cost must be in top 4 this year. Not getting top 4 is unthinkable.

 

[Hunta]

One of the best squads in the league behind City. Our squad cost must be in top 4 this year. Not getting top 4 is unthinkable.

It’s not though is it.

 

[Makingtrax]

It’s not though is it.

 

[Mrs Bergkamp]

Looking at the squad today with those missing and those we want to sell or who want to leave, I feel we're light on numbers. We've listed 13 subs but about five at least won't/shouldn't be here. Not sure that's enough for four comps,formation changes and rotation especially allowing for injuries. We still can't afford to lose Partey either.

 

[blrgooner]

One of the best squads in the league behind City. Our squad cost must be in top 4 this year. Not getting top 4 is unthinkable.

We are 6th on the wage bill, with a spending of around 70m less than Chelsea and 100m less than Man united per year.. If we are a top 4 squad, surely some good work as gone in in the past couple of years?
So if United spend 50m and we spend 150m, our net outlay financially is the the same(Actually way lesser because of deferred payments) for the year.

 

[Makingtrax]

We are 6th on the wage bill, with a spending of around 70m less than Chelsea and 100m less than Man united per year.. If we are a top 4 squad, surely some good work as gone in in the past couple of years?
So if United spend 50m and we spend 150m, our net outlay financially is the the same(Actually way lesser because of deferred payments) for the year.

We’ve been mid table awful. KSE has out invested City so any mistakes like Willian, Mari, Runarsson etc have been covered immediately. Arteta’s very lucky, no previous Arsenal manager has had this support.

Our wage bill was 5th last year, same as our squad cost.

 

[Yousif Arsenal]

Winger RB and CM left from really pushing to compete for major trophy. Our squad is exciting i might be overhype it with major trophy thing but because it's young there only one way to go is up all the players we have got massive potential.

We need to keep show more ambition every summer no matter who manager is.

 

[blrgooner]

We’ve been mid table awful. KSE has out invested City so any mistakes like Willian, Mari, Runarsson etc have been covered immediately. Arteta’s very lucky, no previous Arsenal manager has had this support.

Our wage bill was 5th last year, same as our squad cost.

Well I am not really talking about performance here. You just said that we have one of the best squads. So from the point of view of squad building, looks like we have done well in your estimation when you consider wage bill. Wage bill hardly gets spoken about when people come up with stuff like "Arsenal spent the more than anybody else last season". That statement is just not true.

KSE out investing City for a very small period of time when City have been investing like crazy for a long time is irrelevent IMO. We and City didn`t start at the same place in terms of squad cost. In terms of individual mistakes, I am sure I can point out 3-4 mistakes from literally every single club in terms of transfers. Doesn`t mean much.

Also last season ( in terms of performances this time), 5th in wage bill, 5th in squad cost 5th in table. Pretty much par for the course right? People shouldn`t be complaining(specifically about last season) right?

 

[Makingtrax]

Well I am not really talking about performance here. You just said that we have one of the best squads. So from the point of view of squad building, looks like we have done well in your estimation when you consider wage bill. Wage bill hardly gets spoken about when people come up with stuff like "Arsenal spent the more than anybody else last season". That statement is just not true.

KSE out investing City for a very small period of time when City have been investing like crazy for a long time is irrelevent IMO. We and City didn`t start at the same place in terms of squad cost. In terms of individual mistakes, I am sure I can point out 3-4 mistakes from literally every single club in terms of transfers. Doesn`t mean much.

Also last season ( in terms of performances this time), 5th in wage bill, 5th in squad cost 5th in table. Pretty much par for the course right? People shouldn`t be complaining(specifically about last season) right?

The club has out invested any club in the top 5 European leagues since Arteta has been at the club. Eventually that’s got to take the team into the top 4. I’m not saying it’s a bad thing, it is what it is. And mistakes certainly don’t mean much if you have the luxury of being able to replace them straight away.
Arteta performed on par after two years sub par, compare that to Conte‘s excellent 1st year’s over performance.

 

[blrgooner]

The club has out invested any club in the top 5 European leagues since Arteta has been at the club. Eventually that’s got to take the team into the top 4. I’m not saying it’s a bad thing, it is what it is. And mistakes certainly don’t mean much if you have the luxury of being able to replace them straight away.
Arteta performed on par after two years sub par, compare that to Conte‘s excellent 1st year’s over performance.

This is exactly the kind of figures that are wrong.
You add the wage bill to this to find the actual amount of money that has been spent in this period , Chelsea and Man utd have actually spent more money.

 

[grange]

This is exactly the kind of figures that are wrong.
You add the wage bill to this to find the actual amount of money that has been spent in this period , Chelsea and Man utd have actually spent more money.