Mikel Arteta at least cancels Arsenal transfer plans but misses out on top 4

Arsenal face a crucial summer transfer window and will need to be inventive if they fail to qualify for the Champions League in Sunday’s final game of the season

Mikel Arteta says Arsenal will need to be smart in the summer transfer window if they are to make the most of the funds available.

The Gunners spent over £150million to sign six new players last summer but are still far from completing Arteta’s desired squad. Arsenal have let several players out over the past year meaning they currently have a much smaller squad than many of their rivals.

The lack of depth in Arteta’s squad was perhaps evident in the last couple of games, with a 3-0 defeat by Tottenham compounded by a 2-0 defeat by Newcastle on Monday. The results have seen Arsenal concede fourth place in the Premier League to Spurs, who have a two-point lead ahead of Sunday’s final game of the season.

Arsenal now need to beat Everton and hope for a favor from Norwich, who face Spurs if they are to end their six-year absence from the Champions League. That possibility seems unlikely and Arteta has admitted fierce competition in the transfer market makes the club’s task all the more difficult this summer.

“We’re going to have certain resources, not unlimited resources, some resources,” he said in Friday’s news conference. “And with our resources we have to play the best we can and do what we have to do. We don’t know what the rest of the resources will have, which I think will be a challenge as it’s not a top 3 or top 4 league now. Now there are eight or ten top teams that are there. So we have to find a way to repeat what we did last summer.”

Arsenal could come in up to seven players this summer, with the strikers being a particular priority. Arsenal have been unable to find a replacement for Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, who left for Barcelona in January, but Arteta said he has no regrets for the club’s approach in the mid-season transfer window.

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“Everything we did was try to achieve the goals that we had after January – which was to try to challenge the top 4 and the way we were going to do that,” he said. Arsenal’s failure to sign Dusan Vlahovic, who left Fiorentina for Juventus, left them with Alexandre Lacazette and Eddie Nketiah as the only forwards left at the club.

Both are out of contract on July 1, meaning the urgency for strikers has been further increased, while a central midfielder, a centre-back and full-back are also said to be on Arteta’s wish list. Arteta refused to name the transfer budget technical director Edu is working with this summer.

“It’s not just about that amount,” he said. “When you see the wages (bill) that we have and that we had, it’s day and night. So it’s not just about spending, it’s about what you sold. We had 28 players and ended up with 19 in the squad, so it’s a total spend. Because if not, that number is irrelevant. Because what is the total annual cost of the squad you are building?”