Rice, Havertz and Timber: How will Arsenal line up next season?

Jacque Talbot

• 15 Jul 2023 13:19 BST
• 3 min read

Arsenal have been the most active Premier League club in the window so far - with Mikel Arteta responding to their failed league title bid by adding quality and quantity to his squad.

Declan Rice has been added for a British record transfer fee of €122 million (£105m) from West Ham, with the England international joining Kai Havertz and Jurrien Timber at the Emirates club as they attempt to build a squad capable of getting closer to Manchester City at the top of the Premier League table.

But how will the Gunners line-up next year with these three massive acquisitions?

MORE: Premier League 2023/24 summer transfers: All the Done Deals

Using Mikel Arteta’s 4-3-3 formation, we have implemented the three new signings in their line-up ahead of next season.

The Spaniard has indicated that he would like to use Havertz in a deeper role than the one he played at Chelsea, and the presence of Gabriel Jesus means it's likely the Germany international plays in midfield.

The right-side of Arteta's midfield three would suit him best, given the angles he likes to play at, but Martin Odegaard is stationed there, so Havertz may have to make do on the left.

MORE: Why Arsenal have signed Jurrien Timber

Timber has played almost solely at centre-back for Ajax, but he's played on the right of a back three for the Netherlands and could easily perform the Ben White role by starting at full-back and tucking to make a back three when Oleksandr Zinchenko moves into midfield.

Declan Rice will take Thomas Partey's spot in the No.6 role and will be required to do a lot of defensive work given he is accompanied by more attack-minded players in the middle of the park.

Arsenal's line-up

Aaron Ramsdale will keep his place in between the sticks, while the trusted centre-back pairing of William Saliba and Gabriel will be first-choice again.

Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli will look to combine forces on the opposite flanks to strike fear into opposing full-backs, just as they did last season.

Arsenal may look to sign another attacking player before the transfer window is up, while a midfielder could be on the cards should Partey leave, but it appears that with the addition of Rice, Arteta's starting XI is more or less fixed with more than a month to go before the Premier League begins.