With the close of the window failing to see Arsenal splash much cash, fans are wondering just what is going on.

If you listen to some people you’d think Arsenal never spent any money at all, and while they certainly don’t spend as much as some of their richer (and stupider) rivals, the money spent on their current squad sees them sit in fifth place in the Premier League expenditure table.

In fact, across the top five leagues in Europe only eight clubs have spent more on their current squad than Arsenal according to figures released by the CIES Football Observatory after the close of the transfer window – Man City, Man United, Chelsea, Liverpool, Real Madrid, Barcelona, PSG and Bayern – clubs that no-one would be surprised to see above Arsenal.

squad expenditure2

squad expenditure

Of course, none of this answers the question as to why Arsenal were unable to bring in a senior outfield player, but that question is a lot more complicated than many would have you believe.

It’s not just a case of identifying a player and then buying him, with many clubs refusing to sell during this window as they could not guarantee bringing in a suitable replacement.