Arsenal XI for opening day as Arteta seeks final pieces for title-winning team (2024)

The Gunners finished just two points behind Manchester City last season - and now need summer reinforcements to catch and overtake the champions

Mikel Arteta has improved Arsenal’s Premier League points haul in each of the last four seasons and closed the gap to Manchester City to only two points.

In the last campaign, they racked up 89 points - only one fewer than the Invincibles in 2003-04. The challenge now for Pep Guardiola ’s former assistant is to catch and overtake the champions while aiming to go further in Europe.

The Gunners reached the Champions League quarter-finals for the first time since 2010 with a dramatic penalty shootout win over Porto. No major surgery is required but the Spanish manager is still seeking to reinforce his squad this month with midfield and up front his priorities.

Emile Smith Rowe has been sold to Fulham to raise cash while Arsenal are in negotiations with Marseille over the sale of Eddie Nkietah.

Mirror Football takes a look at the current state of the Arsenal squad and what Arteta still wants before the new season gets underway.

Goalkeeper

Arteta shocked Arsenal fans by bringing in David Raya on loan from Brentford last season to play ahead of the popular Aaron Ramsdale. The Spaniard’s move has now been made permanent in a £27m deal after Arsenal conceded only 29 goals in 38 Premier League games - the best in the division - with only 13 on the road.

Raya’s distribution is also a strong point. Ramsdale wants to move to get first-team football but his options are limited. If the England keeper does leave, Arenal will need another backup keeper. Karl Hein is set to join Real Valladolid on loan.

Defence

William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhaes were the outstanding centre-back pairing in the Premier league last season. But Arsenal have improved their squad by paying £42m for Bologna defender Riccardo Calafiori , one of the few Italy successes at Euro 2024.

Jurrien Timber, signed from Ajax for £34m last year, returned to action in the final game of the season after suffering a serious knee injury in August. The Dutchman can play left-back - giving the Arteta of effectively playing four central defenders in his back four with Ben White at right-back - though Timber played in the middle in the pre-seaon win over Manchester United in the USA.

Midfield

Declan Rice proved to be one of the signings of last season and Arsenal are seeking more midfield reinforcements before the closure of the window. Jorginho, 32, signed a new deal at the end of last season but is kept for bigger matches where the defence needs more cover. Thomas Partey is now 31 so Arsenal could use some younger legs, especially if Rice is used further forward.

Arteta has gone back to his former club for Real Sociedad midfielder Mikel Merino but the Euro 2024 winner has also attracted the interest of Barcelona while he also has the offer of a new contract.

Attack

Arsenal scored 91 Premier League goals last season with Bukayo Saka top scoring with 16. The £65m signing Kai Havertz netted but the German was the 14th highest scorer in the Premier with Nicolas Jackson and Chris Wood scoring more.

Can Arsenal make the final step to becoming Premier League champions without a world-class striker who can net 20 goals? Erling Haaland scored 27 for Manchester City.

Ivan Toney and Napoli’s Victor Osimhen are available but are not cheap - and would force to Arsenal to adapt their style of playing. The outstanding Saka’s game time needs monitoring and Arsenal have been linked with former Leeds winger Raphinha who has fallen behind teenage sensation Lamine Yamal at Barcelona.

Likely Arsenal starting XI: Raya; White, Saliba, Gabriel, Zinchenko; Odegaard, Rice, Jorginho; Saka, Havertz, Trossard

Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.