Arsenal’s 2026/27 Premier League campaign is just days away, with Mikel Arteta’s side aiming to retain their crown and secure back-to-back league titles for the first time since the 1930s.

The Gunners ended their 22-year wait for a league title last term, gazumping Manchester City in Pep Guardiola’s final season as the Citizens’ boss. They also toppled the north-west club in the season’s curtain-raiser on Saturday, emerging from the Community Shield as 3-0 winners at the Millennium Stadium.

This result over Enzo Maresca’s men came after a somewhat dubious pre-season for Arteta’s team, which exposed some of their flaws heading into the new campaign.

With that said, here is everything we learned from Arsenal’s run-up to the 2026/27 season.

Arsenal still need more attacking firepower

REUTERS/Hannah Mckay

As good as Arsenal looked against City, their previous three matches in pre-season all ended without victory. Conceding six goals across defeats to Real Betis and Borussia Dortmund, before being held by Como at the Emirates Stadium, might have raised alarm bells for Arteta.

While the Spaniard can probably compartmentalise these results due to the lack of key personnel who were away enjoying holidays after the World Cup, certain aspects of the games might have concerned him. Most notably, the Gunners looked incapable of threatening the opposition for long periods of these matches.

Ultimately, these offensive deficiencies highlighted the need to dip into the market again and strengthen the attack. The North London club are seemingly aware of this, but time is running out.

Bradley Barcola remains a viable option, with the player said to be keen on a move to the English capital despite the intense speculation linking him to Liverpool. The likes of Kenan Yildiz and Julian Alvarez continue to surface in conversations around potential targets, but Arsenal are yet to make a concrete move for either.

Arsenal’s defence is light on options

Arsenal were without Jurrien Timber and William Saliba for the entirety of pre-season, leaving their options on the right-hand side of the defence extremely limited. The Dutchman is said to be a matter of weeks away from a return, while the Frenchman could be out for the first three or four months of the campaign.

In the duo’s absence, Ben White and Cristhian Mosquera stepped up, but behind them, the Gunners are relying on inexperienced academy prospects. Theo Julienne and Marli Salmon started the final pre-season match against Como, and while the latter impressed, Arteta will surely be reluctant to use either player in meaningful games in the season proper.

If one of White or Mosquera were to sustain an injury in the next few days, the Arsenal manager would be forced to push someone into an unnatural position. One of Declan Rice or Martin Zubimendi would likely fill in at right-back, which is far from ideal, even if for just a matter of games.

Arsenal are clearly looking to address this shortage in their squad. Ezri Konsa remains a primary target, while Bayer Leverkusen’s Jarell Quansah emerged as an option late last week.

A Declan Rice injury would hurt more than Mikel Arteta could imagine

Arsenal’s Declan Rice via REUTERS/Scott Heppell

Midfield is where Arsenal were most hindered by World Cup absences throughout pre-season. Zubimendi, Rice, Mikel Merino, Martin Odegaard and Eberechi Eze all joined up with the squad late, while Bruno Guimaraes only completed his move to the Emirates towards the end of pre-season.

This meant that Myles Lewis-Skelly was left to hold down the fort by himself in most games, with the teenager deployed alongside attacking midfielders like Ethan Nwaneri and Kai Havertz for the majority of the minutes. Unsurprisingly, this left the Gunners vulnerable in the middle of the park.

A recurring theme throughout pre-season was Arsenal’s midfield getting bypassed, particularly in moments of transition, leaving opposition attackers driving at their back four in space. As good as Lewis-Skelly is in possession, he’s not a particularly effective recovery defender, and this showed.

This problem also continued into the first half of the Community Shield, even with Guimaraes added to the mix. City were able to break past Arsenal’s midfield and into space several times throughout the first half.

Declan Rice is evidently the man who prevents these moments from materialising when he starts. The England international has the remarkable ability to eat up ground when the opposition has breached Arsenal’s midfield line, and win the ball back.

If Rice were to sustain an injury of any significance, Arsenal might seriously struggle to contain the opposition in transition.

Myles Lewis-Skelly is a potential superstar who cannot be sold

Action Images via Reuters/Paul Childs

While he looked slightly susceptible to fast breaks when playing as a solo pivot in the first few matches, Lewis-Skelly showed his elite in-possession abilities throughout pre-season. Tasked with orchestrating Arsenal’s build-up as the sole midfielder, he did this effectively and was a point of reference for the Gunners in this position.

The youngster was essentially on trial throughout this pre-season, and he passed with flying colours. Speculation surfaced online linking him with moves to Manchester United and Chelsea, hinting that Arsenal might be prepared to cash in after signing Guimaraes, and if the starlet failed to impress in pre-season.

Despite his excellent end to last season, the sample size of Lewis-Skelly in midfield was still too small to be sure about him in this role heading into the new season. Arsenal were looking for assurances with his displays in these friendlies, and he’s certainly done enough to convince the key decision-makers at Highbury House that he is capable of being a prominent squad player for a team with Premier League and Champions League aspirations.

Arsenal simply cannot cash in on a player who could dominate their midfield for several years to come.

All Statistics via FotMob – correct as of 18/08/2026

Aston Villa have tabled a formal bid to sign West Ham United star Aaron Wan-Bissaka this summer.

The Villans are in the market to bolster their full-back positions as Unai Emery looks to find competition for Matty Cash at right-back, while Matteo Ruggeri is set to sign from Atletico Madrid to replace Lucas Digne at left-back, after he joined Paris Saint-Germain.

The Hammers star has emerged as the top target for the club as they prepare to return to the Champions League, and it has now emerged that they have tabled a straight loan offer to bring him back to the top flight following West Ham’s relegation to the Championship.

According to a report by The Athletic, Villa sent in an offer of a straight loan for the DR Congo international, but it was immediately rejected by West Ham.

The right-back has been valued at £25m by the east London club, and now both clubs are understood to be in talks to find an agreement on a fee for a permanent deal, with Villa keen to lower the fee to something they consider to be more affordable.

West Ham are unlikely to be easy to negotiate with, however, having already sold Crysencio Summerville to Al Hilal for £68m, while they also sold Mateus Fernandes to Tottenham Hotspur for a club-record £85m in this window.

Aston Villa have previously shown an interest in Flamengo defender Emerson Royal for the position, but a deal did not materialise. They have also agreed to allow youngster Kosta Nedeljkovic to depart on loan to Rangers, with an obligation to make the move permanent if he makes a certain number of appearances.

The club have already completed deals to sign Johan Manzambi, Joao Gomes, and Alejandro Garnacho this summer, but they are still expected to be active in the final weeks of the window.

‘Ridiculous’ Wan-Bissaka a Coup for Aston Villa

Wan-Bissaka has been a regular at the highest level for several years now, and he has got the experience of playing in the top-flight, the Champions League, and now even the World Cup.

Cash has been a more than reliable option at right-back for Emery, but he needs competition if he is to be at his best level to avoid complacency, and Wan-Bissaka can absolutely provide that. He also offers top-level defensive ability, which could be incredibly useful in certain games.

While his qualities on the ball have always been questioned, his defensive ability has never been in doubt, with Tottenham playmaker James Maddison describing him as ‘ridiculously good’.

Islam Makhachev became the first person in UFC history to win 17 consecutive fights after defeating Ian Machado Garry via unanimous decision at UFC 330 this past weekend. Left rather battered and bruised in a five-round bout, attention now turns to who can challenge the Russian?

Makhachev moved up to welterweight from lightweight at the end of last year, defeating Jack Della Maddalena for the championship before successfully defending it for the first time in Philadelphia. Although he won via unanimous decision courtesy of the judges’ scorecards, the Irishman was able to land a significant 29 blows and push the champion through five rounds.

Makhachev was, however, in the end able to clear another elite contender, and MMA fans are eager to see the Dagestani back in the Octagon as soon as possible, and a tease from the man himself will keep suspense high.

The Russian said: “We have to fight before Ramadan, 100 percent. I’m 34 years old, I have to fight as soon as possible.”

Ramadan is expected to take place between February and March 2027.

Arman Tsarukyan Analyses Islam Makhachev’s UFC 330 Performance

On The Ariel Helwani Show, Arman Tsarukyan gave his opinion on the welterweight division right now, and he claimed that Makhachev will face tougher challenges as he tries to defend his title. Tsarukyan analysed his UFC 330 performance and criticised the 34-year-old’s execution.

“I think maybe when he missed that high kick, or he hurt his nose…something happened, and Ian Garry was defending very well against the cage,” Tsarukyan said. “He didn’t let him to be on the top, you know? He always stands up and is always, like, hard to carry, you know? The fighter who knows how to defend so good. That’s why he got tired.”

Tsarukyan then went on to suggest that encounters against any of Michael Morales, Carlos Prates, or Shavkat Rakhmonov could be a significant problem for the Dagestani.

“Morales, maybe, yes,” Tsarukyan said. “But still, I don’t know right now who can beat Islam.”

Arman Tsarukyan Names One Fighter Who Could Beat Islam Makhachev

That is when the UFC fighter, who has a professional record of 23-3, revealed who he thinks could beat Makhachev at welterweight.

Michael Morales weighed in on Friday as the back-up fighter for Makhachev vs Garry, but was kept out of the Octagon with both main event fighters in good health.

Morales is on a seven-fight winning streak of his own, defeating his three most recent opponents via first-round knockouts. However, he hasn’t fought since last November, and was seen backstage being confronted by Ian Garry following his loss, sparking speculation that a fight between the pair could happen somewhere down the line.