There is no denying that Arsenal wanted a game-changing attacker this summer – if there was one available.
Not signing one this window does leave them with the chance to act again in January or wait completely until next summer to try to bring in a new forward.
But there will be uncomfortable conversations about why there hasn’t been one during this window, even if the football leadership team are content with the business the club has done.
Questions will of course be asked of Arteta, Berta and co-chair Josh Kroenke as to why, after Arsenal’s success, such an attractive club weren’t able to get one of their targets over the line.
However, there is no denying that Arsenal’s squad is one of the best in Europe. Their bench for the win over Aston Villa contained nine full internationals with two of those – Merino and Zubimendi – World Cup winners.
Gabriel Jesus has moved to Barcelona for £12.8m, and although he was not an integral part of Arsenal’s team because of selection and fitness issues, he still made 27 appearances in all competitions, scoring six goals.
With Martinelli and Trossard both gone, there will be more opportunity for Eberechi Eze to play from the left wing, a position he shone in at former club Crystal Palace.
Eze played in some of the biggest games of Arsenal’s last campaign on the left wing and put in an impressive appearance in that role in the win over Villa on Monday too.
Last season, Kai Havertz missed large parts of the campaign with injury, while Mikel Merino, another option to play at striker, missed a chunk of the season too but both have started this season fully fit.
Those injuries last season meant that Gyokeres had to lead the line for long periods without back-up in his first campaign with Arsenal, but despite that test, it does not take away that the Swedish international’s suitability is still in question.
It is also intriguing that Gyokeres has not played a minute of the opening two Premier League matches so far.
Arsenal are still looking like the early season favourites and have the potential to defend their title, but criticism surrounding the lack of a new forward will be tough to avoid if goals start to become hard to come by.
