Arsenal will line up with Arteta's two summer transfer priorities

Robin Bairner

• 1 Mar 2023 14:59 GMT
• 3 min read

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta is already planning for the summer transfer window and is set to spend big with his Champions League-bound team.

The Gunners sit top of the Premier League two points clear of Manchester City with a game in hand, while they are destined to return to Europe’s biggest competition as they hold a huge 16-point advantage over Newcastle in fifth.

There is no question that over the course of the last season, the Gunners have stepped up a notch in terms of their level and that will offer them more possibilities in the summer window when it comes to transfers.

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According to the Times, Arsenal and Arteta are ready to use this new-found status.

FootballTransfers understands that the Gunners lead the way to sign West Ham’s Declan Rice and the report echoes that they are eager to sign the England international.

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Furthermore, it claims that Arteta wants two central midfield players to arrive, with January target Moises Caicedo still the Spaniard’s priority in this area.

Should the manager get his wish, how will Arsenal line up?

Arsenal with Rice and Caicedo

Boasting the second best defence in the league, Arteta is unlikely to tamper with this area of his team, with a familiar look to the goalkeeper and the back four.

Similarly, the attack almost picks itself, though there is bound to be competition between Gabriel Martinelli and Leandro Trossard for the role on the left wing. Martinelli gets the nod here for the moment.

In midfield, it will become interesting if Rice and Caicedo are thrown into the mix.

Given that Arsenal are ready to smash their club transfer record to land the West Ham player, it must be assumed that he will start. Granit Xhaka is the player who finds his spot under risk, with Thomas Partey and Martin Odegaard very different styles of midfielders.

Instead, Partey’s position will be called into question by Caicedo, though for the moment the incumbent has enough credit in the bank to have the edge in that role when the season starts. The pressure will be intense to keep the spot given the amount that Arsenal will have to invest in the Ecuador star.

Certainly, by adding Rice and Caicedo to their ranks, Arsenal would not only add terrific depth to an area that is already strong, but would be futureproofing the sector for years to come.