The three things Arsenal need to do this season to finally win the Champions League – from the players Mikel Arteta must learn to trust to the January transfer window plan and a returning hero
The Hilton Budapest had been primed, a function room already booked in advance for Arsenal’s staff and players after last season’s Champions League final.
But instead of a raucous party to mark a first European Cup in the club’s 140-year history, a few reflective, sorrows-drowning drinks followed before an early flight back to London for the Premier League title parade through the streets of north London.
The disappointment exuding from Mikel Arteta in the post-match press conference following the defeat on penalties by Paris Saint-Germain was marked. Ending a 22-year wait for a Premier League title had gone out the window, his words verged on anger.
‘Pain, that’s it, when you are so close in the competition and you are a few penalty kicks away from winning the biggest football club competition, that’s the way which you feel,’ he said.
After ending that long, agonising wait to be crowned champions of England, conquering Europe is Arteta’s final frontier. The Spaniard has never tasted success in a European competition as a player or manager, and often uses the Champions League as a reference point in how legacies are defined.
Arsenal are well primed to make that final step. They were, after all, only a few kicks from glory in May, and have strengthened further this summer with additions such as Bruno Guimaraes, Christos Tzolis and Ezri Konsa. But how do they get over that final hurdle?
Mikel Arteta’s side were a penalty shootout away from finally lifting their first European Cup against Paris Saint-Germain in Budapest in May
Gabriel’s decisive miss from the spot was an agonising end to a season that could have been historic
1. Trust the depth
Arsenal’s squad depth gives Arteta the luxury of rotating without necessarily weakening the starting XI.
Ben White has made a case to continue at right back even when Jurrien Timber returns from injury, his telepathic connection with Bukayo Saka and Martin Odegaard forming a triumvirate which opponents have difficulty stopping on the right flank.
In the middle, Myles Lewis-Skelly has performed well in place of the injured Bruno Guimaraes. The new £75million Brazilian is expected to walk into the line-up on Wednesday against Napoli but after his recent displays, Lewis-Skelly will be on the Brazilian’s heels if there’s any dip in form. It’s a great situation to have for Arteta. But he still needs to utilise it.
Last season, he arguably gave far too many minutes to Declan Rice when he was already tiring, for example. The England midfielder, who went on to play a key role at the World Cup, made 55 appearances in all competitions, with 49 starts and 4,454 minutes, or 91 per cent of Arsenal’s minutes when he was available for selection. No Arsenal outfielder played more. Rice himself during the World Cup admitted he had been playing through neural pain in his hamstring since December.
Arsenal had four outfield players above 4,200 minutes – Rice, Martin Zubimendi (4,298), William Saliba (4,254) and Gabriel (4,210). This level of excessive workload must be better shared if Arsenal are to go all the way to the final again, and potentially lift the elusive trophy.
Zubimendi and Rice’s back-up, Christian Norgaard, were not trusted to give the Spaniard a rest, but now Lewis-Skelly or Guimaraes can offer that. Konsa can cover while Saliba and Cristhian Mosquera are injured, and Piero Hincapie can slot seamlessly in if Gabriel needs a spell out.
Even Arteta hinted at this in Budapest after the defeat by PSG, saying: ‘You have to get into the competition with all the squad available in the best moment, each player. And we’ve had more players, many more players than last season but not all of them in that condition for different reasons. And that’s something we have to improve as well.’ At least he’s aware. Now he needs to trust those on the bench to get him through.
Declan Rice has spoken of the neural pain he suffered from this summer, and surely cannot keep on playing as many minutes as he did last season
In Myles Lewis-Skelly and Bruno Guimaraes, Arteta has two high-class options he can call on to give Rice a rest
2. Go again in January
Viktor Gyokeres has fallen down the pecking order with Kai Havertz fully fit.
It was always the plan last season, but an injury to Havertz on the opening day at Old Trafford last season resulted in Gyokeres becoming the Gunners’ first-choice striker in the previous campaign, where he struck 21 goals across all competitions after joining for £56million.
The Swede, though, has only made one substitute appearance in three league matches, coming off the bench for 12 minutes against Chelsea on Sunday and showing signs of rust.
After Havertz and Gyokeres, though, Arteta’s options thin out dramatically. Midfielder Mikel Merino could once again be thrown up front to fill the gap, though this would not be ideal. Having failed in their chase for either Vinicius Junior, Julian Alvarez or Lautaro Martinez, Arsenal are very light in the striker position.
It begs the question: can the club lure the likes of Bournemouth’s Eli Junior Kroupi in the January window? He’s a player Arteta admires, has a special place in fans’ hearts after scoring the goal that helped seal the title in May and could provide the firepower needed to get Arsenal over the line in Europe too.
Eli Junior Kroupi scored home and away for Bournemouth against Arsenal last season – could he be the missing piece in Arteta’s puzzle?
3. Timber’s limbering up
The importance of Timber can’t be overstated. In the Budapest defeat, the Dutchman was only half-fit, and came on for an out-of-place Mosquera only after the Spaniard had given away a penalty for a lunge on PSG’s Khvicha Kvaratskhelia.
Timber is defensively solid, rarely bypassed by opposition players and commits forward with overlaps, too, in the final third. When fully firing, he is arguably the best right back in the league, and was voted as such in the PFA Team of the Year last season.
The 25-year-old trained on Tuesday morning and is in the squad for Wednesday’s fixture against Napoli.
Timber’s return has been a long, arduous journey from a groin injury which had affected him since March. It ruled him out of the Netherlands’ World Cup squad before returning to light training sessions at the start of Arsenal’s pre-season in July.
If the Gunners can have Timber fully fit for the latter stages of the competition, that is a huge plus.