After taking 10 points from the club’s first four matches of the Premier League season, Arsenal’s title hopes for the 2023-24 campaign remain sky-high. Of course, the Gunners are the second favourite behind Manchester City to win the Premier League title.
But even if Arsenal is well set up to give Pep Guardiola’s squad another stiff challenge doesn’t mean the Gunners aren’t without questions and concerns. Let’s take a look at some of the potential weaknesses or flaws that Arsenal fans may want to keep an eye on as the season continues to unfold.
Potential goalkeeper battle
With Matt Turner’s recent departure and David Raya coming to Arsenal on loan, the Gunners don’t have to worry about the backup goalkeeper spot. However, Raya was an established starter in the Premier League at Brentford and won’t be happy to remain on the bench behind Aaron Ramsdale. With his track record, he’s more of a threat to take the starting job from Ramsdale than Turner was last season.
How is Mikel Arteta going to keep both goalkeepers happy without creating a controversial or uncomfortable situation?
Can the Gunners mount a serious title run if questions start being asked about who should be the starter?
On the surface, there’s nothing wrong with bringing in a keeper of Raya’s quality. But that move could backfire if he and Ramsdale end up in a heated battle for the starting spot that divides and distracts the rest of the squad.
Who plays right back?
The right-back position is perhaps the biggest tactical question facing Arteta and the Gunners. Thomas Partey played the first three games of the season at right back, losing his spot in the defensive midfield because of Arsenal’s summer signings. It’s unclear if Partey is the ideal fit at right back for Arsenal, and that was before he suffered an injury in training that will sideline him until at least the second half of October.
Ben White deputized for Partey against Manchester United after starting as a center-back in the first three games of the season. Therein lies the problem for Arsenal. The team’s options at right-back outside of Partey are mostly center-backs who are capable of playing the position but aren’t right-backs. Even when Partey returns from his injury, right back isn’t necessarily his best position. That makes right back a potential weakness for the Gunners moving forward.
Squad management
Those who follow soccer odds understand that winning a Premier League title requires plenty of squad depth and proper management. During last season’s push, Arteta wasn’t challenged in this respect. The Gunners were out of both cup competitions early and got bounced in the Europa League Round of 16, so they had little to distract them from their Premier League season.
But now that Arsenal is back in the Champions League, there will be pressure to do well in that competition, not to mention a step up in quality from the teams Arsenal faced in the Group Stage of the Europa League last fall.
Assuming the Gunners fare better in at least one of the cup competitions than they did last season, Arsenal will have far more meaningful and competitive games outside of the Premier League schedule than last year. Arteta will have to learn to rotate and manage his squad, which became a problem last season, and remains a concern during the early stages of the 2023-24 campaign.