Arsenal may have emerged from the summer transfer window with another strong squad, but Jamie Carragher believes the Premier League champions failed to land the one signing capable of taking them to an entirely different level.
The former Liverpool defender insists Arsenal were searching for a genuine game-changing attacker — a player in the mould of Real Madrid superstar Vinícius Junior or Atletico Madrid forward Julián Álvarez.
Those ambitious moves ultimately failed to materialise.Instead, Arsenal’s only attacking arrival was Christos Tzolis, who joined from Club Brugge in a deal worth £34 million ($45m).
At the same time, the Gunners saw several attacking players leave, with Leandro Trossard joining Besiktas, Gabriel Jesus moving to Barcelona and Ethan Nwaneri heading to Borussia Dortmund.
Gabriel Martinelli could also yet depart, with the Brazilian still in discussions with Saudi Arabian club Al Hilal while their transfer window remains open.
Carragher believes Arsenal’s challenge was not finding good players. They already have plenty of them.
The real problem was finding a player capable of transforming an already elite team.
“They have got really good strikers. I like [Kai Havertz] and I think Mikel Arteta likes him, as well,” Carragher said to Sky Sports.
“[Viktor Gyokeres] has been what most people felt he would be when he came — not quite elite but he can still score goals in certain games. They can still use him to do that job this season.
“They needed someone to be a gamechanger. They tried to get Vinícius Junior, they tried to get Alvarez — that’s the calibre of players.
“It’s very hard to improve Arsenal now because they are such a good team, such a strong squad. So you’re talking about a world class player as the only one that can improve them. They’ve tried to get them and haven’t been able to get these deals over the line.
“There’s no point bringing somebody of the level that they’ve already got. They’ve got five or six players in attack which I would call ‘seven or eight out of 10 players.’ They wanted a ‘nine or 10 out of 10 player’ but couldn’t get it across the line.”
That assessment captures Arsenal’s current transfer dilemma perfectly.
This is no longer a rebuilding project where simply adding quality is enough. Arsenal already possess quality throughout the squad.
The next step requires something rarer — a footballer capable of deciding the biggest matches and producing moments that cannot be coached.
Despite Carragher’s concerns, Arsenal’s season has started in impressive fashion.
Mikel Arteta’s side lifted the Community Shield after a commanding 3-0 victory over Manchester City before opening their Premier League title defence with a 3-0 win against Coventry and a hard-fought 1-0 triumph over Aston Villa.
The champions now face another major early-season test when Chelsea visit the Emirates Stadium on Sunday.
Arsenal have momentum. They have depth. They have a title-winning squad.
But Carragher’s argument is simple: when the biggest games arrive, will Arsenal have the one elite attacker capable of turning a tight contest on its head?
The transfer window may be closed, but that question is only just beginning.
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