3 things Arsenal need to do to get back on top

Arsenal have been one of the top sides in the English Premier League for donkey's years now, and their brand of football was, is, and always will be a treat to watch for any football fan, but their style and swagger may not always get the results against teams who target the defensive frailties in a team that is set up to attack.

Under previous boss Arsene Wenger, who still remains the only manager in the English Game to have won the league undefeated, with his famous Invincibles of 2003/04 etched in history forever.

The Frenchman won the club 3 League titles, 7 FA Cups, and 7 Community Sheilds, all while ushering in a brand new era for English football as he implemented a style never seen before, with players using not just their physical attributes, but also great ability on the ball and the entire team working like a really fine-tuned machine.

Players with great ability on the ball like Dennis Bergkamp, Santi Corzola, Mesut Ozil among countless more became the kind of players to join the club under the stylish Frenchman.

Playing such a brand of football for more than two decades though has made Arsenal somewhat predictable as to what their game plan might be and in recent years, rival clubs such as Manchester United, Chelsea, Manchester City, and even Spurs have looked a far more complete side that the North Londoners, and after 22 years at the helm, Arsene Wenger and the club parted ways, with Spaniard Unai Emery coming in from PSG to replace him.

Emery has managed to bring some of the Gunners' missing grit and grind, managing to go on a 16 game unbeaten run after losing the first two games of the season to Man City and Chelsea. The Spaniard has seemed to fix a lot of issues that troubled the club over the past few seasons, but some lingering matters remain that need to be dealt with over the next few transfer windows. Let's take a look at what the Gunners can do to fire themselves to glory.

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#1 Strength in depth

With the injury to Danny Welbeck, the club now has only Eddie Nketiah as their backup to starter Lacazette and Aubameyang

The hallmark of any team that has gone on to become successful for a sustained period of time is their ample cover for every position in the squad without there being a huge drop off in quality. If we look at any team in the current era that has won silverware consistently, their squad is always stacked with quality, with at least two players available in almost every position.

If we take a look at this Arsenal squad, while we can see the evident quality, we can also see the lack of real options for the coach to choose from, and other than central midfield and right back, the coach doesn't have too many options to rotate amongst while picking his starting lineup.

That has to be a major issue for the club board to address this January and future transfer windows, as with several players' contracts expiring, the club is going to have an even thinner squad. Cover and competition for key players such as Mesut Ozil, Alex Iwobi, Lacazette, Monreal to name a few is really what the club needs.

#2 Infusion of Youth

Centre-back recruit Sokratis is now 30, and while he's okay for now, he's certainly in his final years as a top-flight defender

Among the top six teams, Arsenal had the highest average age according to Trasnfermarkt last season at 26.8 years old. Breaking it down further by minutes played, only Manchester United had a larger share than Arsenal going to players 29 and older.

For a team that used to boast about giving youth a chance, about making stars and not buying them, Arsenal certainly have made moves in the transfer market that don't abide by this philosophy too much.

Sure, the club brought in teenage sensation Matteo Guendouzi, but other than him and Lucas Torreira, most of the clubs' transfers have been extremely short-sighted, and Arsenal need to seriously rebuild over the coming windows, as key players like Monreal, Aubameyang, Ozil, Sokratis are all edging towards what should be their final years in the upper echelon of football.

#3 Urgent defensive reinforcements

Ever since Monreal picked up a knock against Fulham, the team has lacked real quality down the left-hand side, and Kolasinac has looked a far cry from what he was when he joined the club

This seems to be an ongoing trend for years now, and it doesn't feel like it is about to stop anytime soon, as Arsenal have time and again had their defensive instability revealed in moments when it mattered the most.

While Arsenal have had results easier to come by this season than in previous years, mostly due to Unai Emery finally purchasing a midfield destroyer in Lucas Torreira, but luck has also been a major factor, which for a team at this level should not be the case.

Arsenal's starting backline consists of attack-minded Hector Bellerin, the polarizing Shkodran Mustafi, ageing beast Sokratis and soon to be 33-year old Nacho Monreal. Does that look like a title-winning defence? Not in my opinion.

A lot of chopping and changing is required to bring a league title to the Emirates, and reinforcing the defence would be the best way to make a start.