via Getty
LONDON, ENGLAND – APRIL 18: Emile Smith Rowe, Rob Holding, Bukayo Saka, Alexandre Lacazette, Mohamed Elneny and Gabriel of Arsenal observe a moment of silence in memory of HRH Prince Phillip, The Duke of Edinburgh who passed away recently prior to during the Premier League match between Arsenal and Fulham at Emirates Stadium on April 18, 2021 in London, England. Sporting stadiums around the UK remain under strict restrictions due to the Coronavirus Pandemic as Government social distancing laws prohibit fans inside venues resulting in games being played behind closed doors. (Photo by Facundo Arrizabalaga – Pool/Getty Images)
via Getty
LONDON, ENGLAND – APRIL 18: Emile Smith Rowe, Rob Holding, Bukayo Saka, Alexandre Lacazette, Mohamed Elneny and Gabriel of Arsenal observe a moment of silence in memory of HRH Prince Phillip, The Duke of Edinburgh who passed away recently prior to during the Premier League match between Arsenal and Fulham at Emirates Stadium on April 18, 2021 in London, England. Sporting stadiums around the UK remain under strict restrictions due to the Coronavirus Pandemic as Government social distancing laws prohibit fans inside venues resulting in games being played behind closed doors. (Photo by Facundo Arrizabalaga – Pool/Getty Images)
Arsenal football club are in a sport of bother right now. The formerly prestigious team, sit 20th in the Premier League table after three games and zero points. They are yet to score a goal, and their 5-0 humiliation at the hands of Manchester City was the breaking point for many.
While no one expects the club to suddenly win the Premier League crown, challenging for the top 6 remains a necessity after two disappointing 8th place finishes in the past two seasons. As a result, with the club topping the European charts for the most amount of money spent in the transfer window, people expect better.
The backlash got so bad, that Arsenal’s sporting director Eduardo Gaspar aka Edu, sat down in an interview with Sky Sports.
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“I understand the fans, I understand the reasons and I accept that. To create a good foundation, you need the time,” Edu said to which the interviewer replied saying people don’t get time in football.
“I know, I know, but that’s why you make some kinds of decisions. Sometimes you have to make some decisions, not to look into the future. We believe in our squad now, but we believe our squad will be even stronger in the future, not in the short period,” Edu said.
Arsenal and its 149 million euro transfer window
Arsenal’s sporting director explained how he needs to focus on the long term future of the club. Edu explained that if they just signed people based on the positions that they needed to fill, they would miss out on several players. Fans wouldn’t have been happy with the transfer business, but things aren’t very different right now.
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The incoming players at the club, Martin Odegaard (22), Ben White (23), Aaron Ramsdale (23), Takehiro Tomiyasu (22), Albert Sambi Lokonga (21), and Nuno Tavares (21) are all very young. Hopefully for the Gunners, these players can develop on their undoubted potential and prove Edu right in the long term.
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It’s undoubtedly hard for the people who have watched the great Arsenal teams of the past to endure the mess the club finds itself in. But, maybe the words of the technical director will ring true in a few years.
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