How is Arsenal starting their first season after winning the title?

How are Arsenal preparing for their first season back after being crowned champions?

Today, reigning English champions Arsenal face FA Cup holders Manchester City in the Super Cup. The Londoners have been in the running for the trophy several times in recent years (five wins in the last five finals), but this time they are playing as English champions.

Mikel Arteta's squad has undergone changes since winning the Premier League and this process continues. Below is an overview of how the team enters the 2026/27 season.

**How much has the squad been strengthened?**

With attempts to sign Vinicius Junior failing, Arsenal's most significant acquisition of the summer transfer window has been the €87.5m signing of Bruno Guimaraes from Newcastle.

The Brazilian midfielder will further strengthen an already strong centre-back position. He has been playing successfully in the Premier League for several years and can strengthen the team right now. Bruno can cover several positions, his presence will increase the team's attacking options, while reducing the burden on the midfield players.

Left-winger Leandro Trossar, who left for Turkey, has been replaced by Christos Zolis. He has the potential to reach a high level and will expand the squad. The Greek player scored 22 goals and provided 29 assists in 52 games in all competitions for the Belgian club Brugge last season. Arsenal paid 40 million euros for the 24-year-old winger. The Londoners are aiming for another transfer for the left winger (bringing a high-level player for the main squad), but so far there has been no progress in this regard, so Zolis may be the first-team player at the start of the new season.

There was also one transfer for the goal line - Illan Mele came from Leeds on a free transfer. However, he will not compete with the main goalkeeper David Raya. Mele is considered a replacement for Kepa Arrizabalaga, who may leave at the end of the season.

Arsenal also bought the full transfer rights of Piero Incapie from Bayer Leverkusen for 49 million euros. The Ecuadorian defender, who played on loan for the Londoners last season, showed high-level football. Thanks to his presence, Arteta has an additional option at left-back - depending on the situation, he could play Calafiori, who is more involved in the attack, or Incapie, who is more reliable in defense.

**Financial Fair Play Issues**

According to The Telegraph, Arsenal will have to sell players in addition to buying players due to the requirements of the Premier League and UEFA's financial control. This is where the problems begin. The club cannot get rid of Gabriel Jesus, one of the highest-paid players in the team, but at the same time he remains only the fourth choice in the forward position. The transfer price of young midfielder Ethan Nwaneri has fallen due to an unsuccessful loan at Marseille, and the Arsenal management does not want to sell one of the most talented products of the academy for cheap.

Gabriel Martinelli, who has not been able to break into the first team, has been interested in Galatasaray, but the Istanbul club has not offered more than 45 million euros for the Brazilian winger. The player himself does not want to change the Premier League for the Turkish Super League. Fabio Vieira and Reece Nelson were the first candidates for sale, but Arsenal have not received any offers that are completely satisfactory for them either.

As a result, with less than a week left before the start of the Premier League, Arsenal have made around 46 million euros from sales - on the transfers of Trossar, Kivior, Norgar and Hein. According to The Telegraph, the transfer market issues have prompted the club to consider a transfer fee for Lewis-Skelly, who has been linked with Chelsea and Manchester United. The young midfielder signed a long-term contract with the club just a year ago and played in the Champions League final in May.

**Injuries**

Another problem for Arsenal is injuries in the defensive line. Saliba is out for a long time with a back problem, while Timber is still recovering from an injury he suffered at the end of last season. According to the latest information from Mikel Arteta, the Frenchman will miss half of the season, while the Dutchman will miss the start.

As a result, there is no backup option for the positions on the right side of the defense (right center-back and right wing-back). A significant part of the field has been weakened. Now, the inexperienced Mosquera and Ben White, who are also regularly injured, are left to play in these positions, and in their absence, they will have to rely on academy players.

Therefore, Arsenal is looking for a player who can cover both of these positions. The press has mentioned various options, from Jules Kunde to Marc Pubil. The Londoners' priority targets are Ezri Konsa and Jarell Kuansa. However, both Aston Villa and Bayer Leverkusen are asking for at least €50 million for their players, and the Premier League champions are not willing to pay that much for a player who will be on the bench in six months.

**Pre-season training**

Many top clubs, including Arsenal, have been forced to shorten their pre-season training sessions due to the 2026 World Cup. The players returned from their holidays at different times, so Arteta was able to assemble the first team in time for the fourth friendly against Como. In the previous matches, the majority of the second-team players and representatives of the youth team played. The results were in line with this.

Arsenal won only one of the four matches - the first against Girona (4-1). Then they suffered defeats against Betis (1-3) and Borussia Dortmund (2-3, 5-4 on penalties). The final friendly against Como ended in a draw in regular time (1-1, 4-3 on penalties).

It is impossible to draw any conclusions from such a pre-season camp. You can only assess the state of the players individually. Someone is ready to play a full match, while someone still needs to regain physical form.

The match against Manchester City for the English Super Cup will be a rehearsal for the start of the Premier League, and in this match we can see the team's relatively basic composition (players like Saka and Rice have not played in a single match and are not expected to be in the starting lineup for the Super Cup match) and its real strength.