Another transfer window—well two, actually…thanks FIFA Club World Cup—has come and gone. The window slammed shut on Monday as clubs scrambled to submit deal sheets in the final moments to wrap up their summer business. No more refreshing the countless blogs, ITKs, team reporters and more. For now.
Deadline day got caught in Liverpool’s gravitational pull as Alexander Isak, not Marc Guéhi though, finally completed a move to the Premier League champions. Two British transfer records smashed in two months and two weeks, not bad.
Over £3 billion ($4 billion) spent in one summer across the entire league. An utterly bonkers number, though one not to be ultimately deciphered and unpacked right now. This isn’t Economics 101. It’s all about who was brought in where, do they fit needs, are they taking a team to another level?
Perennial bridesmaid for the last three years running, Arsenal, had a clear objective: compile a squad worthy of finally taking home the Premier League trophy. Or, any trophy for that matter. If not for Isak breaking up with Newcastle United virtually during the PFA Awards, much of the window likely lies in singing Arsenal’s praises. It still has to translate to a trophy, but the amount of business done leaves little to be desired.
Here’s grades for Arsenal’s most important transfer window in recent history.
