Arsenal have all the ingredients to be a success this season

Arsenal have all the ingredients to be a success this season, let’s just not get ahead of ourselves.

After all the pre-season tours, the relentless transfer talk and the curtain raiser that was the FA Community Shield, the Premier League is finally back and we have some actual football to watch, enjoy and dissect. The longest three months of the year are over and Arsenal opened their season with a stunning 4-3 win over 2015/16 Premier League champions Leicester City, having twice gone behind.

The Gunners, who beat last season’s title winners and London rivals Chelsea on penalties to win the Community Shield at Wembley on Sunday, were in desperate need of a good start if they are to kick on and turn things around from a disastrous league campaign last time out.

Lifting the FA Cup in May saved face for manager Arsene Wenger, who put pen to paper on a controversial new two-year-deal off the back of the final, and the Frenchman is looking to repay that trust with some big additions this summer.

A strong start in front of their home support, who could have turned toxic very quickly if things didn’t go as planned, was needed and, while it was far from a walk in the park – twice going behind having taken the lead after two minutes, there are plenty of positives Wenger can take.

The marquee signing thus far has been former Lyon striker Alexandre Lacazette, who arrived in style in north London with the record signing scoring with his second Premier League touch, the first being kick-off.

However, the Gooners are still being heavily linked with a move for Monaco’s Thomas Lemar as Wenger looks to continue his overhaul of the playing staff.

Some more additions are needed if the Gunners are to get back into the top four at the first time of asking, which they are currently 8/11 to do so with online bookie Bet way after an opening weekend win, and the likes of Lemar, or a bold move for want-away Southampton captain Virgil van Dijk, would be fine additions.

If Wenger’s side showed grit and character going forward on Friday night, at the back they could not have been further apart. With injuries and suspensions limiting the French manager’s selection opportunities he started with two left-backs, in Nacho Monreal and Sead Kolasinac, acting as centre halves alongside the young but impressive Rob Holding in a back three, with Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain at left wing-back.

That back line was by far the biggest problem over the weekend, however with a fully fit side and maybe one addition before the close of the window, those problems should be solved.

With midfielders Aaron Ramsey and Granit Xhaka having formed a strong pairing at the end of last season, Wenger has a now settled and effective midfield in his new system and a new signing in Alexandre Lacazette, who looks the business after pre-season and a strong competitive debut, to feed off their service.

In the opener, Oxlade-Chamberlain once again showed his value with an outstanding performance in a position even more alien to him than right wing-back, he will be a key asset to Wenger in what could be a fantastic season.

There is always optimism about what lies ahead for Arsenal at this time of the season, and in previous years it has always followed the same pattern, with that all too familiar dip in November and then after Christmas ending any chances of a league title before they really get going.

However, it would appear that Wenger, as long as there is at least one more big addition, has a side and a squad capable of doing big things this season, especially when they get their defence in order.

The new system continues to work wonders for those further ahead, afforded far more freedom in the knowledge that there is an extra man at the back should things go wrong. However, there are plenty of factors which can determine the course of the season ahead. It doesn’t seem like the Europa League is too much of a priority, but it could still cause many a setback in the Premier League as the season draws on.

Injuries to key personnel could break any run at glory this term, though that is not a problem restricted just to Arsenal, which is something that needs to be further considered before any more business, in or out, is done this summer.

The first game showed us a lot about this Arsenal side, it showed that there are still some glaring weaknesses but also let on that, should they be addressed, we could be in for something special.