Arsenal breathing fire: Arteta’s battalion look to extend red hot form!

Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal came under much criticism at the beginning of the 21/22 season. Starting the season with an away loss to the newly inducted Brentford. A 5-0 away defeat to Manchester City at the Etihad only added to the gunner’s woes with the knife hanging behind the manager.

CEO Vinai Venkatesham and Director Josh Kroenke decided to stick by their manager to take the London club out of the ditch despite public outrage. The 50 million pound signing of Ben White from Brighton and Hove Albion came under severe criticism, with fans who bought Arsenal tickets not being given a show for their money as the England international was abysmal in his first few games.

Fast forward a few months into the 2022/23 season, Arsenal are unbeaten across competitions-bar one loss away to a determined Manchester United in the Premier League- and are topping all the tables in all competitions across both men’s and women’s leagues.

No experience, No problem

Arsenal are home to the Premier League’s youngest team and its manager; 40-year-old Mikel Arteta.

His earlier-heavily critiqued youth-only policy, along with the sacking of former club captain 32-year-old Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, is now paying dividends.

Newly appointed 23-year-old club captain Martin Odegaard has led a highly energetic side this season. The calm and composed Norwegian midfielder is the club’s youngest skipper since Spanish midfielder Cesc Fabregas.

21-year-old Gabriel Martinelli and 21-year-old Bukayo Saka have been in the headlines for all the right reasons. Both youngsters have been shining for the gunners regularly in the goals and assists column. Such has been their performances that Arteta has been forced to keep highly talented academy graduate Emile Smith-Rowe down the pecking order.

Arsenal broke yet another record of fielding the youngest-ever player to play in the Premier League when they fielded 15-year-old teenage sensation Ethan Nwaneri in the gunner’s away fixture to Brentford, which they comfortably won 3-0.

Gabriel to don the Gunners’ jersey till 2027

The club handed a brand new and improved offer to first-team defender Gabriel Magalhaes, who gladly put pen to paper. As per the newly agreed contract, the Brazilian will remain in the Emirates as far as 2027. Club Manager Mikel Arteta iterated that Gabriel’s performances have been “strong” since he signed for the Gunners in 2017.

Partey proved right

Arsenal star Thomas Partey came under severe criticism last year when the Ghanaian compared club manager Mikel Arteta with his former boss, the infamous Diego Simeone. Partey drew Arteta parallel with the Argentinian at a time when Arsenal struggled for form at the bottom of the Premier League table.

With the advent of the 2022/23 season, and the club leading the charts across all competitions, Partey’s reference to Mikel Arteta’s mentality as one that wishes “to win and be in control” is being proven right.

Partey enjoyed a highly successful stint under Simeone at Madrid, even making it to a Champions League Final as the club punched above their weight continuously. Returning to Champions League action will be a priority for Arteta and his men as they breeze through a highly successful beginning to the 2022/23 season.

Injuries and suspensions

As for more good news for those with Arsenal tickets, English sensation Bukayo Saka is set to make a return from a minor injury scare after he sustained a kick at their Europa League win over PSV Eindhoven. Despite the doubt over the youngster’s availability, Mikel Arteta expects Saka to be back in action in his original self.

Mohammed Elneny will continue rehabilitation as the midfielder continues to nurse his serious hamstring injury. The Egyptian is not expected to return to first-team training before the turn of 2023.

Last season’s starting XI forward and a key member of Arsenal’s resurgence towards the back end of 2021/22, Englishman Emile Smith Rowe, is also out of contention for a squad place in the foreseeable future.

The highly regarded youngster is nursing a groin injury with no definitive return date following surgery.

Marquee signing Ukrainian Oleksandr Zinchenko is set to return to action with little to no doubt about the defender’s recovery. Zinchenko missed Arsenal’s Europa League encounter against PSV due to a calf injury.

However, the manager is confident they will be fully fit for the Gunners’ next game.

Albert Sambi Lokonga’s Arsenal career in jeopardy

As Arsenal embarked on their new project last year, club director Edu Gaspar and Manager Mikel Arteta brought a heavy influx of youth into the club. Among them, talents like defenders Nuno Tavares and Sambi Lokonga take precedence.

Despite being integral to the club’s epic resurgence, Lokonga and Tavares have been under fire for not meeting the expected standards. Tavares, however, has moved out on Loan to Ligue 1 side Olympic Marseille and has racked up satisfying numbers.

Arsenal’s William Saliba was previously out on loan at the French side and went through rigorous development as the youngster climbing through the ranks to win national colors for France. Saliba has had an impressive tenure on his return to London.

With game time being largely scarce for the Lokonga, the youngster is still adamant in pushing to prove himself to Mikel Arteta. He stated that “20 minutes of game time at Arsenal” would elevate his development more than consistently starting for much less fancied clubs.

A prosperous future lies at risk for the Arsenal defender as he prepares to make a bold decision to work hard to win back a starting position at the Emirates Stadium, hoping that one day soon enough, he would win over the fans with Arsenal tickets.

Saka has “absolutely no interest in leaving”

The Arsenal youngster has been reported to have entertained zero offers for any move out of the club. Saka mentioned that he “shared the confidence” with the club’s hierarchy to extend his stay at the historic club.

However, The Express’s Ryan Taylor reported that negotiations have been ongoing with the player’s representatives and the club for “a long time”. Saka’s extension is one of many improved offers the club plans to make alongside Brazilian attacker Gabriel Martinelli and William Saliba.

This new generation of players is expected to provide full value for anyone with Arsenal tickets.

With a prolonged world cup break coming up, Arsenal tickets are running out at record speed.

With more and more Gunners fans wanting to make it to the Emirates, the official sources are having issues with tickets. While these sources can disappoint the fans who wish to purchase Arsenal tickets for the remaining games, trusted reseller platforms should not disappoint.