In a campaign that sought them a top tier finish, Arsenal have managed to grab hold of talented players that proved their value coming into the matches. Throughout the last transfer windows in the 2021-22 season, the Gunners remained the most active clubs to bring in new signings in the hopes of a title run.
Adding on to that, a lot of experienced players saw the exit door as Mikel Arteta was seen to be backed up financially by the club owners.
Arsenal Incoming Players Review For 2021-22 Season
Ben White
The Gunners had the third-best defensive record in the previous season but the backline was targeted for additional depth. White was the marque signing for Arteta’s backline. The centre back was bought for £50m from Brighton and he immediately became a crucial man at the Emirates Stadium. The 24-year-old averaged 1.4 tackles, 0.6 interceptions, and 3.2 clearances, which indicates that the English defender has played tremendously well.
Martin Odegaard
The Norwegian playmaker has been a prominent addition to Mikel Arteta’s frontline. He was purchased for a transfer fee of £31.5m, after a successful loan spell in the previous season from Real Madrid. Odegaard scored 7 goals and created 5 assists in 40 matches this term on all fronts. Furthermore, the attacking midfielder has profoundly done his job in the midfield department averaging 1.5 shots, 2.3 key passes, 1.0 dribbles and even making 85.7% of his attempted passes.
Aaron Ramsdale
The English goalkeeper was bought for £25m from Sheffield United and was displaced with Bern Leno in goal. He has been a regular in Arteta’s starting XI and has given a good account of himself. Ramsdale was by far the best signing for the Gunners as the shot-stopper has kept clean-sheets in 12 matches out of the 33 that the player has appeared in upon his arrival.
Takehiro Tomiyasu
The backline was brought forth with another addition as Tomiyasu looked to come into the right wing-back position. The Japanese defender was bought for £17m from Bologna and was expected to be compact in creating opportunities while going deep into the final third. Unfortunately, he could only appear in 22 matches for the Gunners across all fronts as he followed with injury spells in the final few weeks of the season. Regardless, he has given a good account of himself averaging 1.5 tackles, 1.1 interceptions, 2.6 clearances and even completed 81.6% of his passes.
Albert Sambi Lokonga
The Belgium International was bought for £16m from Anderlecht to provide defensive cover in the midfield. He has averaged 1.0 tackles, 0.7 interceptions, and 0.6 clearances in this campaign at the Emirates Stadium. The defensive midfielder has even been impressive in distributing the ball as he made 88.1% of his attempted passes, proving to be a successful signing.
Nuno Tavares
The Portuguese left-back was brought for £7m from Benfica, he was expected to act as a cover for injury-prone Kieran Tierney which he did efficiently. Tavares averaged 1.0 tackles, 0.3 interceptions, 1.3 clearances and 0.6 dribbles while contributing to 1 goal and creating 2 assists.
(Stats via Whoscored)
