Arsenal completed an unwanted hat-trick this season of second-place finishes in the Premier League, and made it five years in a row without a trophy.
The progression under Mikel Arteta is clear, and beating Real Madrid home and away will live long in the memory, but this was the first backwards step of the Spaniard’s reign.
And the reasons why are both clear and urgent – injuries played their part, as did the number of red cards Arsenal received, but a lack of striker depth and goalscoring options meant the Gunners did not have a player score 10 league goals for the first time in 101 years.
That is the most obvious need that must be addressed this summer, but what else will they do and who might leave to boost the budget?
Here, our Arsenal expert ISAAN KHAN answers all the key questions.
Arsenal suffered Champions League heartbreak in the semi-finals against Paris Saint-Germain
The Gunners were plagued by red cards this season as they finished second for the third year in a row
What do Arsenal need this summer?
A striker is the most urgent need for Arsenal, who are targeting a new No 9 as a priority. They have badly required one since last summer and their failure to act in that period has arguably contributed to another season without silverware.
The other area of major interest is left wing. Arsenal have long been assessing reinforcements in this position, which is currently quite thin. Gabriel Martinelli is a good player, but has lacked consistency for some time now and the club want to bring in competition for his place.
Signing a back-up goalkeeper to David Raya is being assessed, with Espanyol’s Joan Garcia widely favoured
Signing a back-up goalkeeper to David Raya is being assessed, with Espanyol’s Joan Garcia widely favoured. Though Garcia would cost around £20million, which is pricey for a No 2, and they face competition for the 24-year-old from Newcastle, Barcelona and Aston Villa.
Left back could be a further position Arsenal consider with a potential hole in the summer because of departures, with Kieran Tierney returning to Celtic and Oleksandr Zinchenko likely to leave.
Central midfield should be covered by the expected arrival of Martin Zubimendi, who fills the hole left by Jorginho’s departure to Flamengo in Brazil.
How big is their budget and is PSR a major concern?
Having reached the Champions League semi-finals and finished runners-up in the Premier League, Arsenal are in a strong spending position.
Their European journey earned the Gunners £97m, while securing second place in the league nets at least £175m.
Factors such as strong commercial revenue growth (an increase to £218m for the 2023-24 season compared to £169m for the 2022-23 campaign), improved matchday income, and a manageable wage bill have dictated why the club are in solid PSR standing.
It equates to a big summer of spending — if the club want to do so.
Who are they interested in?
Sporting CP’s Viktor Gyokeres and RB Leipzig’s Benjamin Sesko are the two main striker contenders.
It’s understood that Sporting are currently searching for a new striker and expect former Brighton and Coventry frontman Viktor Gyokeres to leave this summer
AC Milan’s Portugal left winger Rafael Leao has been looked at
Alexander Isak of Newcastle is Arteta’s preferred choice, but that is highly unlikely to happen with the Toon club having secured Champions League football for next season, which means Isak’s asking price is likely to be well north of £100m.
It’s understood that Sporting are currently searching for a new striker and expect former Brighton and Coventry frontman Gyokeres to leave this summer. Because the Portuguese side are demanding a price in excess of £70m, the Swede’s options are limited to a few clubs with the financial power and willingness to spend that on a single player.
Arsenal are one such team, with new sporting director Andrea Berta said to admire Gyokeres from his time working at Atletico Madrid. But internally views are torn on whether the striker can hit the ground running in the Premier League as the Primeira Liga is a different proposition, even though he has scored 57 goals in 49 appearances for club and country this season.
It’s understood that Manchester United are also interested in the player, who flourished under manager Ruben Amorim at Sporting.
Slovenia international Sesko has struck 26 goals in this campaign and at 21 years old, presents an ideal profile for future growth. The Gunners have also previously done much of the groundwork on a potential Sesko deal, having been close to signing him last summer before the player became unsure over how much game time he would get.
On the left wing, Nico Williams of Atletico Club is the priority but his wages make it a difficult deal to do. AC Milan’s Rafael Leao and Borussia Dortmund’s English winger Jamie Gittens have been looked at, too.
As reported by Mail Sport in January, Real Sociedad’s Zubimendi is set to join this summer for around £51million in a deal which is virtually complete. The 26-year-old midfielder will help shore the Gunners up in the middle of the pitch.
In terms of a No 2 goalkeeper, Garcia is in the frame, while former Gunner Emiliano Martinez has been a surprise link in recent days.
Which young players could break out next season to fill gaps in the first-team squad?
Max Dowman, 15, has been name-checked a couple of times this season by Arteta and Declan Rice, and is going on the Arsenal pre-season tour of Asia this summer
Dowman will hope to make the same breakthrough next season as Ethan Nwaneri and Myles Lewis-Skelly did this campaign
Lewis-Skelly went from having no senior appearances to scoring on his England debut
Max Dowman is the obvious one. The 15-year-old has been name-checked a couple of times this season by Arteta and Declan Rice, and is going on the Arsenal pre-season tour of Asia this summer.
Those at the club are massively excited about the teenager and expect him to be part of the first-team squad next season. Arteta hinted that he would already have made his first-team debut if not for Premier League rules, which restrict players registered as Under 15s from being in senior squads.
Aside from Dowman, Ethan Nwaneri and Myles Lewis-Skelly can be expected to continue rising in the same vein of late, with Lewis-Skelly having made himself a first-team regular in his breakthrough season and earned two England caps.
It’s easy to forget that this time last year Lewis-Skelly was still a way away from being a regular in the first-team squad, and he has now made 39 appearances for his boyhood club and scored on his England debut against Albania in March.
Fellow 18-year-old Nwaneri struck nine goals in his breakout campaign, including two excellent finishes in the Champions League and a goal of the season contender in the euphoric 5-1 thrashing of Manchester City in February.
Which players are set to leave?
Loanees Raheem Sterling and Neto are returning to parent clubs Chelsea and Bournemouth, Jorginho is joining Flamengo and Tierney is heading back to Glasgow.
Sterling’s last-minute loan has not worked out at all, with the 30-year-old scoring just once in 28 appearances, against Bolton in the League Cup in September. Neto, who arrived already cup-tied for the League Cup, played just once and made a glaring error in Girona in the Champions League before Arsenal came back to win.
The future of Thomas Partey remains less clear. The midfielder’s contract expires this summer but Arteta wants to keep the 31-year-old at the club. Zinchenko has also been strongly linked with an exit.
Kieran Tierney signed off from Arsenal in style with the opening goal at Southampton on Sunday
Arsenal are in talks with Leandro Trossard over a new deal but his future is still up in the air
Jakub Kiwior had looked destined for the exit but he performed admirably when deputising for the injured Gabriel, especially in the two wins over Real Madrid
As Mail Sport reported, Leandro Trossard is locked in talks over a new contract which would reach 2029 but his future is still up in the air.
The Gunners rebuffed interest from Saudi Arabia last summer but it may be the time to move on, with Trossard now 30 and having scored just 10 times in 56 games this season.
Earlier in the season, Jakub Kiwior was being eyed for the exit this summer but that plan could now change after impressively stepping in at centre back in recent weeks following Gabriel’s injury.
Long-term absentees Takehiro Tomiyasu and Gabriel Jesus are now fringe players but would not be sold this summer while they recover from their injuries.
