Arsenal’s lack of transfer activity may be their Achilles' heel

Napoli’s new forward Gonzalo Higuain poses with the team jersey during his first press conference in Napoli’s headquarters on August 1, 2013. (Getty Images)

Arsenal have been linked with quality players this transfer window and players like Manchester United’s Wayne Rooney, Gonzalo Higuain (who has since moved to Napoli from Real Madrid), Everton’s Marouane Fellaini and interestingly enough, Liverpool’s Luis Suarez have all at one point been linked with a move to the Emirates.

This had every Gooner jumping for joy, simply because Arsene Wenger, previously known to be particularly stingy, has a £70 million transfer fund, which made every fan believe that Arsenal could well challenge for the title in 2013/14.

However with the less than a month to the end of the window, Arsenal fans seem rather agitated with the fact that they have only signed Yaya Sanogo, a 20-year-old striker with little experience, on a free from Auxerre.

Wenger stated that even though the club are still pursuing unsettled Uruguayan Suarez, he believes that the current squad is capable of ending the club’s eight-year trophy drought.

Any knowledgeable football fan will disagree with the Arsenal boss. The fact the Arsenal only beat arch rivals Spurs to fourth-place by one point with that squad last season shows that more competition for places is needed.

When Arsenal miraculously beat Bayern Munich 2-0 at the Allianz their season finally took off. All the talk was about how classy Arsenal were on that night but the real difference was dropping complacent club captain Thomas Vermaelen.

This sent the message that no player’s spot was guaranteed if they were not performing. But Arsenal does not have competition for places in all positions.

If Theo Walcott was injured last season, he was promptly replaced by Gervinho. But the African’s lack of ability to keep the ball is not what a club like Arsenal, or indeed any club, need. Too many players joined captain Vermaelen on the complacency train.

The likes of Mikel Arteta, Wojeich Szczesny and Lukas Podolski started to fade towards the end of the season. The arrival of Suarez would add major competition up front but Arsenal needs more competition in midfield.

While Aaron Ramsey did improve markedly as the season progressed, he still does not have what it takes to lead the Arsenal midfield. The Welshman is extremely inconsistent. The arrival of a quality midfielder like Fellaini will give the likes of Arteta the motivation to fight for his place. The addition of quality players will also ensure there is enough talent on the bench to make an impact on the game.

Arsenal face Napoli in the Emirates Cup later today, fresh after the departure of their star-man Edison Cavani. The Italian side, however, have made some great signings in the off-season and have replaced the 26-year-old striker, whose 29 league goals helped Napoli finish runners up to Juventus.

The side from Naples signed Higuain, once an Arsenal target, from Real Madrid for £35m. In addition to this they completed the loan signing of Liverpool keeper Pepe Reina as well as Raul Albiol and Jose Callejon, both former Madrid teammates of Higuain, on permanent deals.

These are extremely worrying signs for Arsenal. Not only have Napoli added to their squad, they also have quality talent from last season, such as attacking midfielder Marek Hamsik.

Not only are Arsenal fearful of spending money but they seem to enjoy developing relatively unknown players into world class talents only to sell them to their rivals; most recently Robin van Persie, who moved to Manchester United.

As a result of the lack of spending and the willingness to sell their world class players, Arsenal are in for yet another tough season. If things do not change, their trophy cabinet will unfortunately remain empty for yet another season.