Edu Gaspar’s Arsenal transfer mistake has now cost Arsenal points this season, it was a huge miss

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Arsenal may be rueing a missed transfer opportunity under Edu Gaspar following their clash with Chelsea on Sunday evening.

The Gunners went into the tie buoyed by the return of Martin Odegaard from injury, with his impact made clear.

The Arsenal star fed a delicious ball to Gabriel Martinelli, who slammed home a finish past Robert Sanchez to open the scoring in the London derby.

It was a moment that put Mikel Arteta and his side into the box seat but it was a position that they couldn’t take advantage of.

Pedro Neto’s thunderous strike from the edge of the box flew past the outstretched hand of David Raya and brought Chelsea level.

While Arsenal huffed and puffed, they were unable to find that all-important winner and had to settle for another draw.

It highlighted another transfer issue left by Edu Gaspar over his tenure at the Emirates Stadium, which has now cost the side points in the Premier League title race.

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Arsenal regret from missed Pedro Neto transfer

There was once a time when it seemed almost destined for Neto to be lining up for Arsenal as an option on the wing.

The star, formerly of Wolves, had impressed whenever given the opportunity in the division and showed world-class ability.

The Gunners were heavily linked with a switch but didn’t pull the trigger on a deal, with the Portuguese star eventually joining Chelsea.

It’s unknown exactly why Edu and his recruitment team didn’t land Neto, though injuries had clearly been an issue for the 24-year-old.

However, with him now impressing for the Blues while having his minutes well-managed, it underlines a clear mistake from Arsenal to not sign him.

That was underlined by Matthew Upson on BBC Radio 5 Live, who said: “Pedro Neto has to be up there as one of the players of the match. He’s been excellent today.”

It cost them points in the game against Chelsea, but the problem may be bigger than that when it comes to the overall state of the squad.

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Arsenal attacking squad depth a clear problem

The lack of Neto didn’t just impact the game against Chelsea but it has been a running problem through the season when it comes to squad depth.

Raheem Sterling hasn’t been able to make an impact since his summer loan switch from Chelsea, while Gabriel Jesus and Leandro Trossard haven’t made a difference on many occasions.

It leaves a lot of pressure on the starting players such as Kai Havertz, Bukayo Saka, Martin Odegaard and Gabriel Martinelli to make that impact.

That puts a lot of emphasis on starting those players too, with their absence clearly felt in those games they miss.

It remains to be seen whether it’s something Arsenal can fix, but it is a very clear issue left by Edu.