When Mesut Ӧzil signed for Arsenal last September, it marked the end of the strict financial policy used by the club as a result of the purchase of a brand-new football stadium. A relatively quiet start to July had us all thinking nothing had changed, with the rest of last season's top four (and Manchester United) all making major moves as Arsene Wenger strutted his stuff on Copacabana Beach.
But four signings in the space of three weeks shows that the manager has been set free from his shackles and is splashing the cash in positions where Arsenal are in dire need. Having endured the best part of a decade being financially disadvantaged, the feeling that we are no longer just fighting for fourth is one of pure relief and excitement.
With many still suffering from no-more-football stress disorder, signing Alexis Sanchez from Barcelona was a timely antidote. The striker that we had been aching Wenger to get for months was here at last - and what a coup he could turn out to be.
An option up top and on the wing (with our injury record), it makes him an invaluable signing. If he became available a few years ago, he may very well have ended up at Anfield - but it just goes to show how far Arsenal have come in the transfer window since last summer.
Adding Mathieu Debuchy and Colombian goalkeeper David Ospina as the replacements for Bacary Sagna and Lukasz Fabianski meant the squad was complete - and now needed strengthening to win the title.
An option up top and on the wing (with our injury record), it makes him an invaluable signing. If he became available a few years ago, he may very well have ended up at Anfield - but it just goes to show how far Arsenal have come in the transfer window since last summer.
Adding Mathieu Debuchy and Colombian goalkeeper David Ospina as the replacements for Bacary Sagna and Lukasz Fabianski meant the squad was complete - and now needed strengthening to win the title.
It would be fair to say that if Arsenal had the quality in depth possessed by Chelsea and Manchester City, we would have the Premier League sitting beside the FA Cup in the Emirates Stadium's new-look trophy cabinet.
Monday's signing of 19-year-old Calum Chambers from poor, poor, Southampton took the summer's spending at Arsenal, yes, Arsenal, to around 60 million pounds. It is not even August. So with over a month left until the transfer deadline, how are The Gunners shaping up among the other main contenders to the Premier League?
As Manchester City and Chelsea look set to go again for the coveted tag of English champions, the strength of Liverpool's challenge may be undermined by the departure of Luis Suarez - the league's best player. Manchester United would like to think the arrival of Louis Van Gaal can place them in the title picture, but are still bearing the scars of David Moyes' tumultuous first year.
For Arsenal, a new beginning has already been signified by the new - and expensive - partnership deal with Puma. While the kits are still taking some time to warm to, it is clear that in terms of funds, Arsenal have more freedom than ever before. They are on a much more level playing field with the likes of Cit¥ and Chel$ea, and all by the means of self-funded dosh. Class.
The circumstances of the last decade in the transfer window have highlighted what a job Arsene Wenger has done with limited resources. Now restrictions have been lifted we are starting to see the real Arsenal. The next massive step - the final one towards glory for this club - is to express that level of freedom on the pitch and bring home a big one.
Not many will bat eyelids if another FA Cup or League Cup comes along - last year, we raised the bar. The standards of this Arsenal team are at a 10-year-high.
A team comfortably capable of being competitive in both the Premier League and Champions League is both what the supporters have yearned for for so long, and also what the neutrals want to see. With Spain's World Cup shambles signifying the demise of tiki-taka, Arsene Wenger's Arsenal philosophy could be the next best thing on a football pitch.
With the depth of talent that Arsenal are creating with the likes of Chambers, and belatedly, Joel Campbell, the one thing pulling them back from title glory last season looks less likely to be an issue this time around. Over 100 days at the top speaks for itself.
This team is not far away. Seven points, in fact. And judging by the calibre of players the club is drawing in (Ospina and Chambers are set to start as back-up), Arsenal are looking less of just a bunch of decent players, but more of a proper team. Proper teams win big games, and had we won the big ones last year, we would have a fourth double under our belts.
A team that has had to make do with the departures of Van Persie, Fabregas et al and arrivals of Chamakh and Gervinho are now drawing in the kinds of names that the name on the badge deserves - and you can bet Arsene Wenger is not quite finished yet. After executing a 10-year plan to near-perfection, he will not be satisfied until The Gunners are back on top. Here we come.
Arsenal have been set free, and this is just the beginning.
Come On You Reds!
As Manchester City and Chelsea look set to go again for the coveted tag of English champions, the strength of Liverpool's challenge may be undermined by the departure of Luis Suarez - the league's best player. Manchester United would like to think the arrival of Louis Van Gaal can place them in the title picture, but are still bearing the scars of David Moyes' tumultuous first year.
For Arsenal, a new beginning has already been signified by the new - and expensive - partnership deal with Puma. While the kits are still taking some time to warm to, it is clear that in terms of funds, Arsenal have more freedom than ever before. They are on a much more level playing field with the likes of Cit¥ and Chel$ea, and all by the means of self-funded dosh. Class.
The circumstances of the last decade in the transfer window have highlighted what a job Arsene Wenger has done with limited resources. Now restrictions have been lifted we are starting to see the real Arsenal. The next massive step - the final one towards glory for this club - is to express that level of freedom on the pitch and bring home a big one.
Not many will bat eyelids if another FA Cup or League Cup comes along - last year, we raised the bar. The standards of this Arsenal team are at a 10-year-high.
A team comfortably capable of being competitive in both the Premier League and Champions League is both what the supporters have yearned for for so long, and also what the neutrals want to see. With Spain's World Cup shambles signifying the demise of tiki-taka, Arsene Wenger's Arsenal philosophy could be the next best thing on a football pitch.
With the depth of talent that Arsenal are creating with the likes of Chambers, and belatedly, Joel Campbell, the one thing pulling them back from title glory last season looks less likely to be an issue this time around. Over 100 days at the top speaks for itself.
This team is not far away. Seven points, in fact. And judging by the calibre of players the club is drawing in (Ospina and Chambers are set to start as back-up), Arsenal are looking less of just a bunch of decent players, but more of a proper team. Proper teams win big games, and had we won the big ones last year, we would have a fourth double under our belts.
A team that has had to make do with the departures of Van Persie, Fabregas et al and arrivals of Chamakh and Gervinho are now drawing in the kinds of names that the name on the badge deserves - and you can bet Arsene Wenger is not quite finished yet. After executing a 10-year plan to near-perfection, he will not be satisfied until The Gunners are back on top. Here we come.
Come On You Reds!
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