Arsenal has become bigger than excuses and failure will be incompetence rather than a misfortune

A lot will be expected of Mikel Arteta's Arsenal when the new season gets up and running, starting from their English football curtain raiser meeting with Manchester City in the FA Community Shield early August.

The Gunners came desperately close to ending their 19-year wait for a Premier League title last season when they went toe to toe with Pep Guardiola's Manchester City in a two horse title race.

Unfortunately, it was not meant to be. So far this summer, the club has responded in a sensational fashion in the transfer window, sealing the signing of three players ready to walk into the starting XI while also securing the futures of their important players.

Granit Xhaka is the only first team regular to depart the club while there has been multiple options lined up to replace him, including two of the three signings this summer.

Not forgetting a certain Portuguese in Fabio Vieira, who joined the club last summer but struggled in his debut season - a 34 million pounds investment is also worthy of acknowledgement, as a big season could await him as well.

The club broke the British transfer record in a 100 million pounds plus five million pounds deal with West Ham United to sign Declan Rice while also signing one of Chelsea's most important players in recent times, with the arrival of Kai Havertz.

Jurrien Timber also joined from Ajax in what has been the only defensive addition this summer and having all played in the pre-season tour of the USA. they return to London to prepare for their first season with the club.

With the amount invested in strengthening the squad so far, with more expected to come in before the end of the window in September, including a potential move for Brentford Goalkeeper, David Raya, success will be expected to follow suit from the onset.

Without a doubt, the group is competitive and deserve praises for what is considered a conquest last season as they sealed returned to the Champions League after so many years out.

However, costly mistakes, like their losing out to Sporting in the round of 16 of the UEFA Europa League as well as the fell off in the later stages of the league last season will no longer be condoned.

If it does repeat itself, it will be considered incompetence of the manager and players rather than them being unfortunate, as the time has now come to take more responsibility.

The commitment of the owners has to be rewarded by major silverwares, because credits to the Kroenkes, they have also played a major part in the club's resurgence, though they were partly responsible for her regression over the past years.

Positives from the tour to the United States 

Expectations became evident when the Gunners took on the MLS All Stars team and equaled the record for number of goals scored by an international club against the All Stars.

Despite having quality in the pitch, Arteta was still able to call on top players off the bench, something which they did not enjoy for most part of last season.

Kai Havertz showed glimpse of what would be once he is settled into his new role while his height also offers the team a real target for crosses into the box.

The German's two goals so far in pre-season both came off crosses that has evaded opposition defenders and him waiting at the backpost to pounce.

Jurrien Timber is a match made in heaven for the club. Settled in nicely since the environment is so much like that in Ajax. He even featured as a leftback in the win over Barcelona.

Not much has been seen of the clubs record signing, Declan Rice but the English midfielder will surely get his time. He is that one player with the biggest chance of walking straight into the team.

The 5-3 win over Barcelona has to be the highlight for the Mikel Arteta's side in the United States - coming from behind twice against the LaLiga Champions shows just how much the team has improved in its mentality season after season.

The way they dominated the game instill needed confidence when they return to the company of elites in the Champions League once the new season gets underway.

It also appears a step in the proper direction and a source of belief, which will be needed when they battle a team like Manchester City, who had beaten them in all the Premier League meetings since the appointment of Arteta.

Negatives from Arsenal's pre-season so far

The loss to Manchester United is a big concern and at the same time a wake up call for the Arsenal boss as well as the players. Things can go wrong at any moment in time and become very difficult to fix.

Arsenal, though managed to control the tempo of the game after the break but were still unable to get back in the game as Erik Ten Hag's side saw out a 2-0 win inside the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, while also winning 5-3 on penalties.

In the end, it was another lesson learnt by the young side as they look to go one better than the previous season when the new season gets underway.

A repetition of that in a competitive game, even against a side as good as Manchester United will draw the wrath of fans, who will be wishing the club to dominate their rivals all through the campaign.

Of course it will be difficult to go invincible, but these shouldn't happen when the consequences will be devastating on their potential title charge.

Summary of Arsenal's preparation

The club has done a massive job in the window and have added very good players to the team. They can be optimistic heading into the new season.

However, unlike in past seasons, the fans won't be too kind should the club fail to match or exceed expectations in the coming season - even so as Manchester City has lost some important contributors in their team.

It is time for Arsenal to get out of their confort zone and take responsibility for the entirety of the season, as fans have run out of patience, waiting for the light after the tunnel.

It I'll ever happen, it has to start happening in the 2023-24 season.

Hassan Afolabi