Where Do Arsenal Go From Here?

After an embarrassing 4-1 defeat to Maurizio Sarri’s Chelsea, Arsenals season ended in disappointment as their Europa League status was secured for the 2019/20 season which was the one thing the fans desperately did not want. Because of this, Arsenal will have a lower budget for the upcoming transfer window. This means they will be unlikely to sign big names such as Nicolas Pepe and Dayot Upamecano without the lure of Champions League football next season. Reports say Arsenal’s budget will be as low as just £40m rather than the £65m they would’ve had if they had secured Champions League football.

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang of Arsenal
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang of Arsenal shows dejection after the UEFA Europa League Final between Chelsea and Arsenal at Baku Olimpiya Stadionu on May 29, 2019 in Baku, Azerbaijan. (Photo by Etsuo Hara/Getty Images)

Arsenal were completely dominated in the Europa League final, big players such as Ozil, Aubameyang and Lacazette failed to turn up whereas Chelsea’s players such as Olivier Giroud, Kante and Hazard (with 2 goals and an assist in possibly his last game for the club) seemed to shine.

Arsenal finished fifth in the Premier League in new manager Unai Emery’s first season at the club in an uninspiring season including losses to Leicester City, Wolves, Crystal Palace and Everton just in the month of April. With their low budget for the upcoming transfer window, they’ll have to recruit very well and in the right positions if they are to do better next season.

Players like Lucas Torreira, Aubameyang and Lacazette should be built around with solid squad players such as Hector Bellerin, Bernd Leno, Holding, Granit Xhaka and Kolasinac to build a solid core to the squad. Arsenal will need to buy players that will fit into this team and be willing to play football the way Unai Emery will want them to.

They’re also losing good squad players for free like Aaron Ramsey, Danny Welbeck and Petr Cech whereas Mesut Ozil looks like he’ll be leaving the Emirates this summer. On top of the positions that Arsenal fans will want to strengthen, the club will have to look at replacing these squad players first to keep the squad depth.

Arsenal have been linked to players like Nicolas Pepe and Dayot Upamecano but without Champions League football secured for the 2019/20 season, they may look at cheaper targets. One target has been Bournemouth’s Ryan Fraser, Fraser played all 38 of Bournemouth’s Premier League games last season mainly at left wing scoring 7 goals and adding 14 assists to his name. Fraser would cost Arsenal roughly £40m, if they could offload some deadweight then we may well see Ryan Fraser in an Arsenal shirt next season.

Another cheaper option instead of Upamecano is Mario Hermoso of Espanyol. Hermoso is available for just £20m and is being heavily linked to Arsenal, the former Real Madrid youth player is also being followed by big European clubs such as Bayern Munich and Paris Saint Germain. If Arsenal can convince the player to join them, they’ll have a very talented defender on their hands.

The fans and Unai Emery will hope for a better season in the 2019/20 campaign, they’ll need leadership from the front line of Aubemeyang and Lacazette, but they’ll also need to strengthen the backline if they are to keep up with the rest of the top 6.

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