Arsenal faced a challenging holiday season with a winless streak in their last four games. Mikel Arteta’s team experienced three consecutive losses against West Ham United, Fulham, and Liverpool, causing them to drop from the top spot to fourth in the Premier League standings. While the team is still within reach of the league leaders, Liverpool, the recent performance has highlighted some weaknesses.
The offensive struggles are evident, with Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Martinelli, and Gabriel Jesus experiencing a decline in goal-scoring compared to the previous season. Saka, who scored every 228 minutes last season, now scores once every 278 minutes. Martinelli’s goal frequency has dropped from every 187 minutes to once every 649 minutes, and Jesus scores once every 313 minutes, down from every 189 minutes last season.
The pursuit of Ivan Toney seems logical to address Jesus’s limited goal contribution, but Arsenal has no plans to meet Brentford’s steep asking price of €116 million (£100 million), potentially hindering any January transfer hopes.
In central midfield, the team faces challenges due to over-reliance on Declan Rice amid Thomas Partey’s injury issues. Additionally, there are concerns in the full-back positions, with Benjamin White’s form not matching the previous season, and left-back presenting a significant worry with various options facing limitations, including Kieran Tierney’s loan at Real Sociedad and defensive vulnerabilities in other players.
