Journalist David Ornstein has given his view on Arsenal’s transfer window and what the club will look like going forward.
As this article from Sky Sports shows, whilst Arsenal were not the most active Premier League club in the transfer market when it came to bringing people in, they were certainly the biggest spenders as their transfer business totalled £131.8m in terms of net spend as they brought in the likes of Ben White, Aaron Ramsdale and Martin Odegaard to name just a few.
Given the disappointment that was last season, it’s clear to see that the Gunners are trying to rectify the situation as soon as they can whilst also looking to the future, with all of their signings this window being under the age of 25.
And speaking about their business in the window during a live stream for The Athletic, Ornstein claimed that the club had done some good business in his eyes – but that fans should wait a while before they can expect any sort of decent return:
“I think the business in and out has been good. But, the full effect and manifestation of how good, will not be seen for a fair while to come, because these are all pretty much signings for the future. The outgoings, well, we’ll judge once we see how Arsenal cope without them.
“And I think – people won’t want to hear this – but the fans are going to have to stay patient. That’s not something that’s welcome when are Arsenal sitting bottom of the table, but the club believe in a long-term project, for right or for wrong, they believe in Mikel Arteta for the time being.
“And I’m really fascinated to see how it pans out, because I think individually, if you take the finances out of it, Arsenal have made some really impressive signings.”
TIF Thoughts on David Ornstein’s comments about Arsenal’s transfer window…
Do you think Arteta will be Arsenal manager by the end of the season?
Yes
No
Ornstein is right to some extent when he says that the deals have been right ‘if you take the finances out of it’.
Because Arsenal have done what they needed to do: they brought in a new central defender in White to replace David Luiz, a goalkeeper in Ramsdale to compete with – and potentially replace – Bernd Leno, and a creative midfielder in Odegaard to replace the hole left by Mesut Ozil last summer.
And whilst they may look expensive, if they were players that the club felt like they desperately needed to get, then they did the right thing in making sure they got them rather than missing out by going cheap.
As Ornstein also points out, given the ages of the players that they have brought in, they are certainly players for the future, it’s just going to be a case of whether or not Arteta is going to be allowed to stick around to manage them.
Because whilst Ornstein says the hierarchy believe in Arsenal to succeed, given their recent run of form, that patience could well be put to the test in the coming weeks, but on the playing side at least, it looks as if the club could be set in those positions for years to come.
In other news: ‘From what I understand’ – McNicholas reveals why Arsenal didn’t sign £19.8m-rated star