Edu says Arsenal can be pleased with the way they tackled a difficult transfer window after the Gunners concluded their business in the early hours of Saturday morning with the opportunistic loan recruitment of Raheem Sterling.
Mikel Arteta’s first team squad has undergone serious surgery since May with three first team squad members leaving as free agents – Cedric Soares, Mo Elneny and Arthur Okonkwo – three more – Emile Smith Rowe, Aaron Ramsdale and Eddie Nketiah – leaving for around £80 million and five others – Nuno Tavares, Sambi Lokonga, Karl Hein, Fabio Vieira and Reiss Nelson – departing on season-long loan deals.
With exits secured for a number of academy prospects, some earning the club decent cash, it’s been a busy period for goodbyes.
Along the way, the Gunners completed a £27 million deal for David Raya and welcomed three more keepers – Lucas Nygaard, Tommy Setford and Neto – into the fold, while also strengthening in defence, Riccardo Calafiori, and midfield, Mikel Merino. While the latter has already sustained a shoulder injury that could sideline him for two months, Edu believes the first team squad is ready to compete for the title again.
He told Arsenal.com: “It’s the last day, the last minutes, so (it’s been) a long day, a long transfer window but in the end, I think we as a club have to be proud once again. The way we are working together, the way we did all the deals.
“I think we are in a very good situation when see all the loan players in the right clubs. You see the signings we have like Riccardo and like Merino, so the players that we planned to sign, our targets, they are here. Also the players that we decided to sell, I think we sold them for the right price, to the right clubs, in the right way also which is important.
“So today to be here on the last day of the transfer window, to get someone like Sterling, who I believe will be someone very important for the squad, who is going to give a lot to the team. So it’s a pleasure, and in the end everyone – not only me because there are a lot of people working here as well – but it’s a pleasure we are finishing the transfer window.”
After years of criticism for not recouping more cash in the transfer window, Edu says the deals agreed for outgoing players matched their initial expectations, even if they included making some difficult decisions.
“We have to understand that we live in the football world, but also have to do business, we have to be clear here, and sometimes you have to sell players to make the business alive,” he said.
“We decided to make some decisions in terms of which players to sell and how we wanted to sell, which level of price we want to sell. I think we get what we expected, which is important for us.
“I think we did it in the right way, which is also very important to us. And when you see the players going to clubs where they are comfortable and they are happy to go to. I think you can get all the elements and OK, I think we did the right thing for everyone. That’s making me feel really good.”
He added: “The way I see the squad right now, we are strong, I think we are very strong.”
We are STRONG
Gunners strong together!
Yes! We are!
I feel like Sterling could have a really positive impact on Nwaneri too. I know Odegaard is mentoring him but no one understands the weight of expectation on a young, black player like Raheem.
The vibes are so strong at Arsenal right now.
Good shout. Between Saka & Sterling, I’m sure they’ll explain the daily mail’s weird obsession with writing about how much young, black players spend on their families. (Spoiler, it’s racism)
I alwsys liked Sterling if anything becaue I felt some kinship with him especially how the media has treated him.
Who would have thought Edu would prove to be this good? Especially after the initial few signings like Willian, Soares, Mari etc.
Nothing wrong with any of those signing, they were where we were as a club at the time. We were out of Europe and these were as good as we were going to get at the time. The impressive bit has been how we’ve made signings that have helped us transition up the league. Contrast us with Man Utd, 3 or 4 seasons ago we were in very similar league positions. We signed White they signed Verane, 1 player on the way up the other on the way down, 1 was a piece in a coherent squad building strategy the… Read more »
It was actually a brilliant window from Edu and his team. We got very decent money from our backup and academy players, showed with Eddie that as a selling club we wouldn’t be bullied any more, and waited just long enough to force Chelsea into accepting a great loan for Sterling, where they still pay more than half his salary, while not committing with him beyond next summer. We also added precious experience in this young team with Sterling, Neto and Merino. The only blow is the Tierney injury that blocked a sale, but we still balanced the books and… Read more »
We’ve done very well and i think for the first time in a very long time there’s no deadwood in the squad.
Never been a massive fan of Sterling but he does have world class movement if only very average finishing but he’ll certainly offer us more than Nketiah and Nelson combined. The fact we’re only paying half his wages and there’s no obligation to buy means he should be highly motivated as his future is uncertain again in a years time.
Ya all fair enough, Raya, Cali, Merino and Timber back are massive additions literally and are as good in their positions as in whole of Europe.
Sterling comes with a point to prove and could well be a difference maker so let’s see but just hope the injury curse doesn’t continue Gabi jesus and merino injured in training, this early is hard luck , so fuck off bad luck please .
The next few games subs bench is going to be interesting. With all the injuries, we may only 4 first team players and a load of youth/academy players. Let’s hope we don’t get any more injuries.
Come back to me about “strong” if Odegaard, Saliba, Havertz or Saka get injured, After being asked to play & carry all our expectations all season every game again ? Personally numbers wise & identity wise I don’t think it’s been a good window but we will see ?
Sorry guys shit night! 6 month old grandson rushed to hospital so bubbly & excited I’m not ! Back now but issues to be solved
Only the only players we don’t have adequate cover for is either Odegaard and Saliba. Sterling and Jesus are more than good enough to fill in for Havertz or Saka
……………Raya/Neto
White/Tomi
Salibs/The Rbs/timber
Gabi/cali,kiwi
Timber/zinck/Cali/Kiwi/KT/myles Lewis Skelly
Thomas/jorgi/Rice
Rice/Merino/Zinck
Martin Od/Ethan/merino/kai
Saka/Sterling
Kai/jesus/trossard
Trossard/martinelli,jesus,Sterling,
Plenty cover in my mind, very good squad with players who provide cover for range of positions
I agree with you but the attacking group is definitely weakest (you’ve listed Trossard and Sterling twice!) hope we have something lined up in January there.
Saliba has adequate cover IMO, can’t ask for more than Timber/Calafiori/Kivior/Tomi as CB cover. the drop off from Saliba to anyone else is just a part of having a player of his quality.
Cover for Odegaard is a bigger issue. IMO Odegaard backup and a centre forward are all the squad is missing
saka can play as odegaard cover and sterling could play on the right
havertz can play as odegaard cover when jesus is fit
Best wishes to your grandson .
That’s obv priority.
But there’s talent in the squad and depth, but we up against it with funking 115 charges for sure but hopefully a pep self implode is around the corner, he fell out with debryune and Ederson, resigns Gundagon, fell out with Alvarez, I just feel they on the wane and look at Walker as prime example but let’s see, if we knew for definite there be no joy in it and that’s the joy of sport
Any team becomes weaker if their best players get injured. We have a big enough squad to put out a decent team if any player gets injured. That has not always been the case.
Sincerely hope all is well with your Grandson. I’m sure I speak for everyone on here.
I missed that when I first read the comment but yes 100% all the best.
The fact there wasn’t a mad rush to sign the players Arsenal put out on the market & many ended up on loan shows me Arsenal were paying these players well over the odds. Clubs on the continent can’t compete with wages in the PL & only a small handful in the PL could pay what Arsenal were paying them.
PS Wojtek Szczęsny has announced his retirement at 34 but I would have thought he would have jumped at the chance of being backup to Raya & end his career where he started.
PPS I still think Wenger made a mistake getting rid of him when we know who replaced him since.
Edu’s a thinker.
How do you rate Arsenal’s transfer window? To answer that, you need to ask 4 questions: 1. Is the incoming player a starter in the 1st 11? 2. Does the incoming player improve the subs bench? 3. Have Arsenal adequately replaced an outgoing player? 4. Do the transfers put in jeopardy Arsenal’s profitability & sustainability position? Analysis: Merino: I believe he is a better option than Partey & Jorginho and is why, at 28 yrs, Arteta broke his age rule & went for him. A proven winner, very combative and skilful and so, yes, a first 11 starter and improves… Read more »
Eddie was actually replaced by Havertz last year once it became clear he would play as a striker and not a midfielder. Merino was the actual replacement of Havertz in midfield this summer. So I wouldn’t call Eddie’s sale a gamble, even if Jesus’s injuries keep hitting hard we still have Trossard and Sterling who can play at no. 9. I feel that, with a net spend close to zero, or squad is much stronger than last year, except for Ramsdale being replaced by Neto (I hope Hein comes back stronger next summer). It’s no mean feat from Edu and… Read more »
Our defence is amazing but if you think we can compete with Man City and Real Madrid with signings like Sterling and depending on Partey and Jesus staying fit/performing, you are delusional. Really bad window which leaves the squad smaller and weaker. We are literally one injury in midfield or attack away from fighting for the top 4. So many games and depth is not existent.
Sterling, Partey and Jesus are all squad players in my mind. We only start them against City or Real Madrid if we have injuries. That could happen, luck is a factor we can’t control for but neither can anyone else (even City, with all of their cheating). However, if they can take minutes against Southampton, Fulham, etc. we are better placed to keep key players fit at key times. I love our academy boys but, rightly or wrongly (my opinion varies based on the player), they were not trusted to take those minutes most of the time last season.
Really strengthened in defense with Calafiori joining and Timber fully fit, but strange to me that we didn’t sell or loan Kivior and of course Tierney is still here I guess. Not sure if we tried to sell/loan either one and couldn’t get an acceptable offer, but their not playing much at all this Fall is only going to make the price fall on them. We let four attacking players that didn’t play much, but all had experience with us and we know what they give us, while bringing in Merino and Sterling, experienced players who we aren’t sure how… Read more »
It amazese how some arsenal fans think right now! Some of the posts I saw off various social media platforms were mind-blowing ! I honestly think these people need to get together so they can comfort each other over how hard it is to be an arsenal fan right now and reminisce about the good old days when mesut ozil was playing in the left wing while getting beat 6 nil at Stamford bridge👍🤡’s
Amazes me
it was a good transfer window, the best i’ve ever seen from us in terms of selling. but we have a lot of unresolved business for next summer. we came up with makeshift solutions for issues that are still there. we still need to buy a goalkeeper (or two), a wide forward and a striker next summer. currently we have no backup for odegaard either. we brought two attacking players and got rid of four, in a squad that was already thin. i expect us to do some buying in january…
Disagree with edu here, he’s failed to add adequate bodies to the midfield for the fourth window in a row- can’t rely on two players over 30 to anchor our midfield for 40 plus games a season, particularly when one of them has been injured consistently for the last 4 seasons.