Unai Emery will be looking to stamp his mark on the Arsenal squad this summer as he looks to lead the Gunners into a new era after Arsene Wenger.
Having been appointed so quickly after the end of last season, the Spanish tactician will relish having so much time to settle in north London and assess what is needed for next year.
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Aside from falling short in Europe and the cup competitions, Arsenal also finished outside of the top four in the Premier League for the second consecutive campaign and so in order to bridge that gap, they’ll arguably need key reinforcements this summer.
Based on the statistics from last season, which show that they conceded 51 goals in 38 league games to give them the worst defensive record of the top seven sides, the defence is arguably the first port of call for Emery to address.
As noted by Tuttosport, he’s been linked with a double raid on Juventus for soon-to-be free agent Stephan Lichtsteiner and Medhi Benatia, and so should those moves go through, that would help solidify their backline.
However, according to Sport, it’s also been claimed that the new Arsenal boss could be eyeing attacking reinforcements too with head scout Sven Mislintat reportedly pressing ahead with talks to try and prise Ousmane Dembele away from Barcelona.
The 21-year-old endured a difficult first year at the Nou Camp, with injuries restricting him to just 24 appearances in all competitions.
He still managed to bag four goals and nine assists, but there were also struggles to adapt to Barcelona’s style of play with his fitness issues making it difficult for him to settle.
Whether the La Liga champions opt to keep him in the squad for another year at least to allow him to prove his worth remains to be seen as that would seem like the logical thing to do. However, according to Sport, Arsenal are keen on taking him to north London so he can showcase his quality as part of Emery’s new side.