THE ARSENAL TRANSFER WINDOW: IT'S NOT TIME TO PANIC YET

The transfer window has officially reopened again, running until September 1st. Due to the lack of any conclusive activity during the mini-ten-day window, there’s already a sense of growing anxiety amongst Arsenal fans. And to be fair, that’s entirely understandable.

We’ve seen rival clubs making early moves. Names are flying around, deals are getting done, and timelines are shifting quickly. In that whirlwind, the absence of big Arsenal announcements has some supporters fearing we’re falling behind. The pressure, the speculation, the familiar sense of dread is all here again.

But here’s my take: this is not the time to hit the panic button.

Yes, early moves are always more comforting. They give fans something to cling to. They feed the excitement and calm the nerves. But they don’t win you titles in June. The only thing that matters, in my opinion, is that we get our business done right, not rushed and ideally before pre-season begins.

There is no trophy for who signs players first. It more or less ends up with the team who signs the right ones.

You also have to understand there’s also more context to the early moves made by some of the big clubs. For example, Man City’s early business was to ensure that they had a squad capable enough to participate in this summer's Club World Cup. On the other hand, Liverpool’s notable incomings are targets where they were mainly the front-runners, so it makes it easy when you’re set on certain players, similar to our situation with Martin Zubimendi.

It’s easy for us fans to forget that Arsenal have already been doing their homework behind the scenes. This isn’t a club that sleeps through the early window. Based on our previous activities, we have been a club that moves with caution, purpose, and intent. And often, the best moves are the ones that stay quiet until they’re ready to land.

I know part of our anxiety stems from the lack of inactivity in the last two windows and that has scarred us to a greater extent. But let’s also not overlook the timing. The preseason kicks off in mid-July. That’s the real internal deadline. In my opinion, that would really matter for Arteta. You want new signings embedded early enough to settle into the system, to absorb the tactical details, to build chemistry. If we reach that point and the key deals are still unresolved, then yes - I will be the first one to ring the alarm bells.

But right now? We’re still in the calm before the storm.

The anxiety is natural. It comes from care and also from trauma. But the real transfer window, the one that defines seasons, doesn’t end in the first two weeks of June. So for now, patience is still a strategy.

Let the dust settle. Let the club do its work. And let’s judge the window after it closes and not when it has just opened.