Arsenal are picking themselves up to go for glory again in the 2025/26 season after a string of near misses. The feeling of failure could cripple many players, and it remains to be seen how the last few years will have affected the Gunners. But behind the scenes, as the preseason tour is about to take off, manager Mikel Arteta assures that the players are "fully convinced" of what they need to do.
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‘We’re excited to have a successful tour’
Arsenal are already well underway with their preparations for the 2025/26 season. The squad set out for a warm-weather training camp in Spain at the start of the month before they held a private friendly against Watford at the Sobha Realty Training Centre. Now, Arteta is keen to kick on in Singapore.
“We are very good. Very excited about the new season. We already had a week, a very good week in Spain. Training really hard with the new signings. There is a really good connection between all of us and now again we are super excited to be here. We had an incredible welcome from the supporters. They are so passionate with the context, the weather. We’re excited to have a very successful tour.”
The Gunners have to go again despite the disappointment that has headlined the last three campaigns.
Arteta was on track to be the youngest ever Premier League manager to win the trophy when Arsenal were riding the crest of a wave at the start of 2023. But his men finished second to treble-winning Man City. Two years later, the Citizens and Liverpool have denied them the crown.
To make matters worse, the side have earned no silverware since the Community Shield in 2023 and no major honours since the FA Cup in 2020. If they are going to make the most of the latest rebuild in the Emirates era, the Spaniard senses that the fine margins must finally go in their favour this season.
“They're fully convinced. The good thing is I don't have to convince them. They know how good they are and how close we've been. At the end it's those details that made you make the next step which we all want and just working on them to realise where they are and the basics that we need through the season to put ourselves in the best competitive opportunities and chances to have the biggest probability to achieve our goals. That's a daily work. That's our responsibility in each individual.”
Preseason can set the tone for surprises in the squad. Myles Lewis-Skelly and Ethan Nwaneri, who are both in contention to be PFA Player of the Year, were by far and away the breakout stars for the Gunners last season. Both teenagers had to be patient and wait for their moment, but they hinted that they were ready to shine on the big stage with their contributions to the camp this time a year ago.
The 43-year-old knows that many are more likely to judge him based on the bid for titles rather than how many minutes go to players from Hale End academy. But he is not ruling out the idea that more youth could get the chance to be an active part in the team if they have earned the right to play.
“They have the opportunity. The window is open. Whoever knocks so hard and kicks the door is going to have the opportunity. So, we're going to have games now. We are going to have the opportunity to see some of them. So, it's up to them.”
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‘We have to improve the depth and the quality’
Arteta offered some overall thoughts on the composition of his camp at this stage of the transfer window. He started with a brief discussion about the most prominent departure from the squad.
For the first time in five years, the Gunners will be without Thomas Partey. The Ghanaian did not renew his contract with the club, exiting at the end of last month, and days later, he was charged with five counts of rape. The manager made clear his thoughts on how the club dealt with this matter.
“I think the club was very clear in its statement. There are a lot of legal matters that are complicated so I cannot comment in any of that. I appreciate that but a lot of fans have questions over the way in which the matter was handled by the club.”
Partey joined Jorginho, Takehiro Tomiyasu, and Kieran Tierney on the list of first team members who have left North London this summer. The arrivals are equal in number and have appeased Arteta.
“New faces bring new excitement, new energy as well. We signed very important players as well. I think everybody feels like the heights has to go again to a different level and what we are seeking.”
The Spaniard still sees that there is plenty of work to do in the rest of the transfer window. After all the injuries that afflicted the camp last year, quality and quantity are imperative to add to his roster.
“It's still a long time in the window and we are seeking still in terms of numbers. We are short and we have to improve the depth and the quality of the squad, and we are constantly looking in the market, but still, that happens. I can focus on the players that we actually have, work with them, and I'm very pleased with what I've seen so far in the first 10, 15 days.”
However, he is positive that the requisite work will take place. Andrea Berta has brought his years of experience from Atletico Madrid to the board, which will want to learn from mistakes of the past.
“I am very pleased. That's what I would say. There is a lot of things that we have to bear in mind to get a player over the line, but I'm very hopeful that we're going to do it very soon. It’s exciting. I think the moment you see the club ownership with ambition that we have, they see the alignment that we had with everybody in the board with Rich, with Tim, with everybody that is connected with Andrea.”
