Arsenal had more than 20 players on shortlist to capitalise on title win — SkimNews
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- Arsenal entered the window as Premier League champions with a shortlist of more than 20 players, drawing targets from Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid, Chelsea and Tottenham
- Bruno Guimaraes joined from Newcastle for £75m as Arsenal's most eye-catching signing, after pivots away from Elliot Anderson (who went to Manchester City), Sandro Tonali (£92m to Spurs), Alex Scott, and Amadou Onana (ruled out by a World Cup knee injury)
- Ezri Konsa signed from Aston Villa for £51m plus £4m in add-ons after an initial £40m offer was rejected; Arsenal also made Piero Hincapie's loan permanent and signed Illan Meslier on a free
- Morgan Rogers was Arsenal's primary attacking target but Villa raised their asking price from £100m to £120m following Anderson's £116m City move, and Chelsea ultimately signed Rogers for £117m
- Vinicius Jr signed a new long-term Real Madrid contract despite Arsenal preparing to finance a potential British-record deal, while Julian Alvarez preferred to stay at Atletico over joining Barcelona
- Christos Tzolis arrived from Club Brugge for around £35m after scout Maurizio Micheli watched him play for Greece against Sweden — hailed internally as one of the window's quiet successes
- The combined Guimaraes and Konsa fee of £126m raised eyebrows over longevity, with both players set to turn 30 by the end of next season
Why it matters: Arsenal delivered proven Premier League quality to Arteta's starting XI but ended the window without an elite attacker, leaving the title defense reliant on Viktor Gyokeres — currently second-choice striker — and untested depth after Gabriel Martinelli and Leandro Trossard's departures.
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