2023 has been a rollercoaster year for Arsenal.
Arsenal spent much of the year at the top of the table, only to see Manchester City lift the trophy last season. Now, they find themselves in the midst of a title battle once more.
Aside from the disappointment of missing out on the league title, there is plenty to look back on fondly for the Emirates Stadium faithful. Mikel Arteta’s Gunners produced some glorious football, made a long-awaited return to Champions League football, and of course there was that Bournemouth game.
In many ways it was a year of being so near, yet so far. Huge progress was made, and so too were mistakes. If Arsenal are to enjoy greater success in 2024, these error must be learned from.
5 lessons Arsenal learned in 2023
Cause of title push collapse
There were many reasons why Arsenal were not the 2022/23 Premier League champions. The quality of eventual winners Manchester City cannot be overlooked. However, the loss of William Saliba to injury ahead of the run-in exposed the lack of defensive depth in Arsenal’s squad.
Whilst it is unfair to pin the blame on Rob Holding, he simply could not fill Saliba’s boots. This was a cruel way to learn that more quality was required at the back.
Mikel Arteta’s January priorities
With the 2024 January transfer window now set to open in a matter of days, the issue of defensive depth remains. This has not been due to a lack of activity in the transfer market. However, £38 million summer signing Jurrien Timber and Takehiro Tomiyasu are both now sidelined with injury.
As things stand, Saliba, Gabriel Magalhaes, Ben White, Oleksandr Zinchenko, Jakub Kiwior, and Cedric Soares are the only fit senior defenders at the club. Cedric will never be trusted by Arteta for an important match. As such, bringing in defensive reinforcements is an absolute must this winter.
Keeping Thomas Partey was a mistake
Arsenal had the the opportunity to let Thomas Partey leave in the summer. Ultimately, the Gunners opted to keep him. If the Ghanaian had stayed fit, this would have been a good decision, as he is undeniably an elite midfielder. However, his horrendous fitness history and track record of injuries meant that the odds of him staying fit were always slim.
So it has proved, as he has managed just five appearances across all competitions so far this season. The time has come to move on from Partey, and the chance to cash in should have been taken in the summer.
Full-back riddle remains
It is increasingly clear that Zinchenko represents a problem for Arteta. Tomiyasu has impressed at left-back, but is too injury-prone to rely upon. Zinchenko, meanwhile, is so important to Arsenal’s attacking play, given the way he inverts from the flank and bolsters the team’s numbers in the middle of the park.
However, his defensive lapses are an issue. It is a bit of a cheat to include this point in this list, as Timber’s injury robbed us of the chance to learn if he could reliably recreate Zinchenko’s creative influence without being something of a liability at the back.
Arsenal building for sustained success
One thing that has now been proven, given their current place in the league table, is that Arsenal’s title push last season was no flash in the pan. The Gunners are genuine contenders now who will be taken seriously by everyone they come up against. There is no question mark over their quality, or surprise package aspect to their performances any more.
This creates new challenges in and of itself. Bukayo Saka has recently spoken out about the additional attention he is being afforded by opposition defenders. Arsenal are now one of the teams to beat. They have a target on their back. Time will tell if Arteta has built a squad that can cope with this until the very end of the campaign. The signs looks good so far.
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