Mikel Arteta acknowledged after Arsenal’s Carabao Cup defeat to Brighton that his squad is still ‘very, very short’ of where he wants it to be.
The Gunners boss made 10 changes to the side that won 1-0 at Chelsea on Sunday and his second string fell short at the Emirates Stadium, going down 3-1 to the Seagulls.
With the January transfer window beginning to loom large, the defeat was an example of why Arsenal will need to strengthen to keep up their early-season pace in the Premier League.
Speaking after the loss to Roberto De Zerbi’s men, Arteta accepted that more is needed for his side to compete. “We know where we are at the moment,” he said. “We know that we have certain injuries, and the squad is very, very short.”
When asked if he needs to add to his squad in January, the Arsenal boss added: “I said from day one that we have a short squad. It’s what we have. If everyone’s available and no one is injured we are OK, but the moment there is, we know what it is. It’s nothing new. I think I said it the first day after the transfer window.
“That’s [January] a window that is open and we’ll have to discuss the opportunities that we have, the capacity that we have for any changes and be in the market for opportunities. So it’s a lot of options that are open.”
The North London side has shown interest in Nigerian winger, Samuel Chukwueze, as a potential option, according to Fichajes.
Gunners face competition from Aston Villa for the signature of Villarreal’s winger.
Arsenal are currently top of the Premier League and are further looking to strengthen in the upcoming window. According to reports from 90min, The Gunners are looking at a host of attacking options like Cody Gakpo and Mykhailo Mudryk.
