Arsenal: Andrea Berta’s main transfer priority is clear as Gunners prepare for seismic summer | OneFootball

Mikel Arteta needs a top-class striker and Berta must deliver in a way that the club failed to last summer

The return of club football after what was, for most top-flight fans, an even longer international break than usual brought a mixed bag for Arsenal.

Bukayo Saka’s goalscoring return to action after three months out for Tuesday’s 2-1 win over Fulham and confirmation of the appointment of “Miracle Man” Andrea Berta as sporting director has given everyone at the club a lift after a frustrating start to the year that extinguished their hopes in three competitions, but injuries to Gabriel and Jurrien Timber against the Cottagers are fresh concerns for Mikel Arteta.

Arteta’s side should be a match for anyone, but Real consistently produce a kind of sorcery in the European Cup that leaves Arsenal as firm underdogs for the quarter-final.

Berta took over as Arsenal’s new sporting director last week

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Fail to win the Champions League and it will be another trophyless season for Arteta’s Arsenal, a fifth in a row since the Spaniard led them to the 2020 FA Cup in his first year in charge with a side bearing almost no resemblance to the current team (Saka is the only survivor and was an unused substitute in the final).

Arteta has been a huge success at Arsenal and maybe one of his biggest problems has been transforming the team too quickly, sending expectations soaring when still building a robust squad.

At some point, however, he is going to come under pressure to mark the club’s progress with silverware - and that point is likely coming next season.

It is foolish to blame Arteta for finishing behind Manchester City in the previous two seasons but this term the coach and the club are culpable for another near-miss, their failure to recruit a striker a huge factor in failing to keep pace with league leaders Liverpool, as well as the domestic cup exits against Newcastle and Manchester United.

Arteta has earned not-unreasonable comparisons with Sir Alex Ferguson, who took four seasons to win anything with Manchester United, but there have also been parallels with Tottenham under Mauricio Pochettino, whose squad in north London were eventually worn down by consistently falling short.

Arsenal’s failure to recruit an elite striker has hindered Arteta

Arsenal FC via Getty Images

Arteta does not have to worry about his squad going stale - Myles Lewis-Skelly and Ethan Nwaneri have given the side a fresh feel, even considering two underwhelming transfer windows - but in the fierce environment of the Premier League, opportunities can suddenly run out.

In short, as Berta begins work, it is a crunch summer ahead for Arsenal and imperative they do not squander another chance to sign a top-class striker.

The noises from the club, including interest in Sporting’s Viktor Gyokeres and Benjamin Sesko of RB Leipzig, are positive but Berta must still deliver in a way that the club failed to last summer.

Liverpool’s recent wobble, losing limply to Newcastle in the Carabao Cup final and elimination from the Champions League at the hands of Paris Saint-Germain, as well as the impending loss of Trent Alexander-Arnold to Real, suggests the Reds may face a period of transition.

City feel like a club between two great teams, Guardiola’s ageing superstars pushing for one last hurrah in the FA Cup this term and his next batch of players yet to fully mature.

The quality of the rest of the usual challengers is currently poor, evidenced by Nottingham Forest comfortably occupying third place.

There should therefore be another chance for Arsenal next term in the Premier League, provided they learn their lessons, but clubs that consistently miss big opportunities tend to look back with regrets.