Arsenal

Adwaidh Rajan
BBC Sport journalist

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Ninety minutes might be too small a sample size to predict a team's trajectory.

But the manner in which Arsenal have kicked off their new campaign suggests they are well-equipped for a formidable title defence and remain the team to beat once again.

The usual performers delivered as Declan Rice and Bukayo Saka both made an impact after only appearing as substitutes against Manchester City in Sunday's Community Shield victory, while Kai Havertz has now scored in back-to-back games.

Riccardo Calafiori was a constant source of energy on the left flank while Gabriel looked solid despite the absence of the injured William Saliba, and the Brazilian will be relishing the prospect of partnering new signing Ezri Konsa, who was presented to the fans before kick-off.

But the standout performer was Christos Tzolis, the winger who pressed relentlessly, created chances and played a key role in both of Arsenal's first-half goals on his Premier League debut - a display that only lacked a goal for himself.

Even without Bruno Guimaraes, and with Viktor Gyokeres only starting on the bench, the champions looked to be in complete control. They carried a constant threat and were rarely troubled themselves.

And the fact they hardly had to shift out of second gear to do so will be encouraging for Arteta, as Arsenal look to defend a Premier League crown successfully for the first time.

Whether you were at the game or following from elsewhere, we want to know what you learned.

Have your say on Arsenal's performance

What did you make of Coventry's display?

Reaction and analysis to follow - and come back on Saturday for a selection of your replies.

Alex Howell
Arsenal reporter

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Arsenal have spent more than £100m already, bringing in midfielder Bruno Guimaraes from Newcastle (£75m) and Club Brugge winger Christos Tzolis (£34m) during this transfer window.

Last season, their extremely well-organised defence - aided by the effective partnership of William Saliba and Gabriel - helped them win their first title in 22 years as they conceded just 27 league goals.

But half of their title-winning backline is not going to be fit for the first part of the season.

Saliba has been ruled out for an "extended period" with a long-term back issue, which he had been managing last season and which ended his World Cup with France early.

Jurrien Timber, the first-choice right-back, is also out for the opening weeks with a groin problem that caused him to pull out of the Netherlands' World Cup squad.

That has left Ben White, who has had his own fitness issues in recent seasons, as the Gunners' only fit right-back and 21-year-old Cristhian Mosquera as the only right-sided centre-back to partner Gabriel.

It could be argued Arsenal, who also made defender Piero Hincapie's loan deal permanent this summer, could be able to cope without signing another defender.

But Mikel Arteta does not seem to like fielding two left-footed players at centre-back - which would happen if White got injured and Mosquera had to move to right-back.

Riccardo Calafiori is preferred at left-back by Arteta because of the unpredictability he brings to the team's attack, while Hincapie is left-sided too.

Highly rated 16-year-old academy defender Marli Salmon is also on the books, but is most likely to be used sparingly in cup competitions as he continues to develop.

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"I'm hungry to win and that's what I'm here for," Arsenal's newest summer signing Ezri Konsa said after penning a four-year deal, with the option of a further year, at Emirates Stadium.

The 28-year-old defender, who has signed a deal worth £51m plus £4m in add-ons, leaves Aston Villa with 286 appearances, 12 goals and four assists under his belt.

Konsa featured heavily as Unai Emery's side ended the club's 30-year trophy drought with the Europa League title last season, while also representing England in every single match at this summer's World Cup.

"I'm super excited," Konsa said. "It is a privilege to be here and I can't wait to get started. I want to keep winning.

"It is a proud moment, for me and my family, to play for one of the best teams in the world. A lot of emotions have gone through my head, but I think it will really kick in on the first matchday.

"I'm here to win. I will do everything in my power to continue bringing success to this club.

"I know Mikel Arteta loves defenders who can really defend and defenders who are calm on the ball. His style suits me, so I can't wait to get going."

Sporting director Andrea Berta said: "He is a defender of high quality. His athleticism, composure and tactical intelligence has established him as one of the Premier League's most consistent performers.

"He will bring valuable versatility to our squad, being comfortable at both centre-back and right-back, while also maintaining the high defensive standards which are fundamental to our challenge of winning major trophies.

"We are welcoming a player with proven Premier League and international experience, plus strong leadership qualities, who will adapt seamlessly to our style of play. Just as importantly, we are welcoming a player with the character and mentality to make an immediate impact at our club."

I never read too much into the Community Shield, but to beat Manchester City as comprehensively as Arsenal did was hugely impressive and it shows where they are at.

Bruno Guimaraes is a good signing and while Christos Tzolis could not cut it at Norwich City - the jersey was too big for him - he looks the part too.

Joking aside, it was Daniel Farke who signed Tzolis for the Canaries in 2021 and called him one of the brightest young prospects in Europe, and he has been proven right about that.

This is all bad news for Coventry, though.

Speaking of Norwich, they haven't been in the top flight for a few years now but I always remember them getting stuffed in their opening-day fixture in 2019 when they played Liverpool away - and it is a nightmare for Sky Blues boss Frank Lampard to open with a game like this.

I suppose, on the flip-side, if Coventry can somehow go to the Emirates and get a draw against the champions then it would provide such a huge boost to their players.

But I can't see past an Arsenal win. The scoreline just depends on how much Mikel Arteta's side put their foot down.

Sutton's prediction: 3-0

Read the full predictions and have your say here

Alex Howell
Arsenal reporter

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Arsenal are getting closer to completing a deal to sign 18-year-old Blackburn Rovers striker Igor Tyjon.

The England youth international has been a long-term target for the Gunners and they attempted to complete a deal to sign the forward in January.

Multiple sources have now told BBC Sport that a deal has now been agreed between both clubs and a medical is expected to take place.

Tyjon has made three appearances for Blackburn's senior side with two in the Championship in the 2024-25 season and the last in the EFL Cup last season.

He has not signed a professional deal with Blackburn but is into the third year of his scholarship.

According to Transfermarkt, Tyjon scored seven goals in 21 appearances in all competitions for Blackburn's academy sides last season.

Blackburn have been approached for comment.

Matt Jones
BBC Sport journalist

It doesn't get much tougher for Coventry City in their first top-flight game for 25 years. The Sky Blues travel to defending champions Arsenal on Friday (20:00 BST) for the first game of the 2026-27 Premier League season.

The Gunners ended a long wait of their own last term, as they finished top of the pile for the first time in 22 years. Given the instability elsewhere in the Premier League – nine of the 20 teams in the division have new head coaches – Mikel Arteta's side are the big favourites to retain the title in the eyes of many.

Like Arsenal under Arteta, Coventry come into the season after years of stability. Head coach Frank Lampard was appointed in 2024 and has excelled; his team coasted to the title in the second tier last season, finishing 11 points clear of Ipswich Town in second.

Gunning for two in a row?

Although they have some injury issues to contend with going into the new campaign – William Saliba and Jurrien Timber will miss the start of the season – Arsenal look well set to go again.

In Bruno Guimaraes and Christos Tzolis, Arteta has added two goalscoring options from midfield too. The former registered 14 goal contributions in the Premier League last season, with nine goals and five assists, while Tzolis produced a massive 40 – 17 goals and 23 assists – in the Belgian top flight for Club Brugge.

With a robust defence to lean on, if the Gunners can find some extra stardust in the attacking third, then they could represent a formidable opponent this term.

In terms of this fixture, Arsenal's record has been phenomenal against newly promoted sides at Emirates Stadium in recent years.

They have won 17 of their past 18 Premier League games against promoted sides at home. The Gunners are also unbeaten in 45 Premier League home games against promoted sides, the longest such run by any team in the competition's history.

Early Sky Blues?

This fixture represents a tall order for the Sky Blues with that in mind and, while there will be plenty of excitement upon their return to the Premier League, it may take a while for their campaign to take off.

According to Opta, Lampard's side have the toughest start of any team in the division this season. They face Hull City at the Coventry Building Society Arena in week two and then trips to Manchester City and Nottingham Forest sandwich a home encounter with Brighton after that.

They do at least have some fond memories of matches against Arsenal on the opening day. In 1993-94, they won 3-0 at Highbury thanks to a hat-trick from Micky Quinn.

It is no surprise that the football landscape has shifted since then, though. In taking to the field on Friday, Coventry will set a Premier League record. This is their first match in the competition for 25 years and 94 days, the longest gap between games by a side in the league's history.

Chris Collinson
BBC Sport statistician

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The Gunners were fully-deserving of their Premier League title as they were by far the best team, with their expected goal difference much higher than closest rivals Manchester City (+36.7 compared to City's +26.7).

Their defence was excellent across the board, not just in terms of goals conceded. They remarkably gave up both the fewest and the hardest chances to score in the league, so there was no luck involved in how they managed to let in so few goals, with 27 conceded from 28.2 xG against.

There's still room for improvement in attack though. While only Manchester City scored more, Arsenal's 71 goals were the fewest by a champion since Leicester in 2015-16 (68). The Gunners did take their chances as only Tottenham and Aston Villa overperformed their xG by more than their six goals, but they only ranked fourth for shots and xG, suggesting they could do with more creativity this season.

Arsenal are exploring a move for Juventus and Turkey winger Kenan Yildiz, 21. (Independent), external

Inter Milan are interested in signing Brazil forward Gabriel Martinelli from Arsenal. (Corriere dello Sport - in Italian), external

Want more transfer stories? Read Friday's full gossip column

Follow the gossip column on BBC Sport

Chris Bevan
BBC Sport journalist

Last year, only 17% of BBC Sport predictors (6/35) thought Arsenal would be champions. This year, 89% (25/28) think they will successfully defend their crown - and no-one thinks they will finish lower than second.

Theo Walcott - Prediction: 1st

They have got the biggest advantage of all - continuity. Mikel Arteta is still there, they are coming off an 85-point title-winning season and they have strengthened rather than rebuilt.

The Bruno Guimaraes signing is massive, to add to a midfield that already boasts Declan Rice and Martin Zubimendi. Their defence was also ridiculously good last season, although William Saliba's progress after his World Cup injury is something to watch closely.

Paul Robinson - Prediction: 2nd

If Victor Osimhen comes in from Galatasaray, and they get Villa defender Ezri Konsa too, then it's a different conversation. But they are not the only team still trying to get deals done.

Thomas Hitzlsperger - Prediction: 1st

Arsenal are the team to beat. Unlike a lot of their rivals, they kept their manager and, every season, the team plays together and gets additions.

I still don't expect Arsenal to play nice football in the sense that I am excited to watch them play. I just think they really know what it takes to win, and they are going to do the same again this season.

Premier League predictions 2026-27: BBC Sport pundits pick their top four

Chris Collinson
BBC Sport statistician

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In the Premier League last season, 13 of the 20 teams finished with between 40 and 60 points - the most in an English top-flight campaign since 2003-04 (also 13).

Was the Premier League so competitive in 2025-26 because the quality of the 'lesser' teams got better or the top teams got worse? It is hard to know for sure.

Given how savvy clubs like Brighton, Brentford and Bournemouth are, the vast amounts of money that enable even bottom-half sides to sign the best talent from abroad and the Premier League's current dominance of the Europa League and Conference League, it would seem to be the former.

However, the fact that promoted play-off winners Sunderland were able to finish above 13 teams in their first season back suggests the league was maybe not as strong as we think.

What we do know is that whether because they got worse or their opponents got better, four of the sides that finished in the top seven in 2024-25 - champions Liverpool, Chelsea, Newcastle and Nottingham Forest - took 79 points fewer between them last season.

While Forest's decline was perhaps expected given their incredible seventh-place finish in 2024-25 and their journey to the Europa League semi-finals last season, the others were far more surprising.

Sunderland and Leeds smashed the recent run of promoted sides struggling to compete by taking 64 more points than the teams they replaced in the top flight.

As a result, this season will be a bit of an upside-down one in that Bournemouth, Brighton and Sunderland have European campaigns to navigate while Chelsea, Tottenham and Newcastle do not.

Will we therefore see a bounce-back to the more 'traditional' order in 2026-27 or are we truly entering a new, fiercely-competitive era of the Premier League?

Read more on the Premier League's competitiveness

Sami Mokbel
Senior football correspondent

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Arsenal have made a pre-contract offer to sign Georgia Under-21 international Andria Bartishvili - who has been compared with compatriot and Paris St-Germain winger Khvicha Kvaratskhelia.

The Gunners have accelerated their interest in the 17-year-old attacker with a view to him arriving in London towards the end of the year when his contract with parent club FC Kolkheti expires.

According to sources close to the player, Bartishvili, who is currently on loan at Iberia 1999, is believed to have other options and is still to decide on his next move.

Liverpool and Juventus are among the clubs credited with an interest in Bartishvili.

The Gunners' move for Bartishvili has been led by sporting director Andrea Berta's assistant Maurizio Micheli, who is credited with unearthing Kvaratskhelia during his time with Napoli, where he was chief scout.

The youngster has been likened to Kvaratskhelia in Georgia given their similar attacking attributes.

Bartishvili would require the necessary international clearance to complete a move to Arsenal or any other Premier League club.

Alex Howell
Arsenal reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Mikel Arteta has said that Myles Lewis-Skelly will 100% be an Arsenal player once the transfer window closes.

Lewis-Skelly's future has been the subject of much debate, with reported interest from clubs in the Premier League.

Arsenal are also trying to maintain their self-sustainable model and have been looking to raise funds through player sales.

However, when asked whether Lewis-Skelly will be at the club after the deadline on 1 September, Arteta's answer was: "100%."

The Gunners boss was then asked about the importance of players from the academy succeeding at the club because of their bond with supporters.

"Certainly. The players that have been raised in our system - and they feel generally that love and that connection with the club - bring something else," Arteta said. "There's no question about that.

"We need to look after them in a really special way because they bring value that is very difficult to find.

"That's why, when we can, we want to protect those assets as much as possible, develop them and make them extremely important for the club."

Tasnim Chowdhury
BBC Sport journalist

Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has been speaking to the media before Friday's Premier League opener against newly promoted Coventry City at Emirates Stadium (kick-off 20:00 BST).

Here are the key lines from his news conference:

• Forward Bukayo Saka and midfielder Declan Rice are "ready to be involved" but defender Jurrien Timber has not trained with the squad. Arteta said the Dutchman may be ready "in the next few weeks".

• Arteta said "let's see how it is" when asked about Bruno Guimaraes' injury. He added that the summer signing brings "new energy" but also competition for team-mates to prove themselves.

• Myles Lewis-Skelly will "100%" remain an Arsenal player at the end of the transfer window. Arteta added that academy players that "feel the love and connection with the club bring something else".

• Arteta said he feels he does not have a target on his back because "we start from scratch and we're going to have to prove we have the level to go back to that position again". He added: "If you give me the choice, I want to be first, I want to be hunted and I want to be in control of our future rather than depending on somebody else."

• On how hard it will be to defend their title: "We will find out. We haven't done it before so I can't really tell you. The desire and ambition is to be better than what we were last season, a month ago or last week when we played Manchester City. We have the ability to improve, to evolve. That is what I sense and feel around the club - and especially around the players."

• Arteta said it is "really tough" to have discussions with players about leaving the club, adding: "We need to face that reality, but I think you need to face it with real honesty and transparency because when you are on the other side, that is exactly what you need."

• On coming up against Coventry boss Frank Lampard: "What a player he was. He was one of my favourite midfielders by far. Why? He could produce - he could do absolutely everything." He added that what has made both managers so successful in the past 12 months is that they "share the passion and love for the game".

• On the Sky Blues: "What they've done as a club is remarkable. What Frank has done is incredible. After so many years without being in the Premier League, they earned the right to do that and they've earned it in a really special way. Not only that, they absolutely deserve to be where they are. I love the way they play and the courage that they show in every game."

Follow all of Thursday's Premier League news conferences

Got a question about Arsenal? Get in touch here and we'll seek answers from our experts

Some of you have been sending in questions on Arsenal, with Junaied asking me if it is a wise move for Ezri Konsa and whether he will play enough under Mikel Arteta.

Arsenal are planning to compete in multiple competitions this coming season and will need to utilise their squad.

They played 63 games in total last season as they won the Premier League and lost in the Champions League final.

Injuries also plagued them last season so the Gunners are using this campaign, after their title win, to kick on and bring in quality players that can challenge the first team.

Yes, Konsa will find regular game time hard when Saliba and Timber are fit but he could also push to start if one of those two players suffer a drop in form.

Arsenal are doing the same in midfield with the signing of Bruno Guimaraes. His arrival means that one of Martin Zubimendi, Myles Lewis-Skelly or Mikel Merino will always have to start on the bench as the first choice three will likely be Martin Odegaard, Declan Rice and Guimaraes.

Simon Stone
Manchester United reporter

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There is a bit of movement within the academy ranks at Manchester United, with a number of their older players set for moves to rival clubs.

Winger James Scanlon and full-back Habeeb Ogunneye, who spent time on loan in League Two with Swindon and Newport respectively last season, are both in talks with Arsenal.

Although the pair only made a handful of appearances in senior football, it is felt, at 19 and 20, they have further development in them.

Neither were involved in United's pre-season campaign under Michael Carrick, even though 15 academy players were picked in the 25-man squad for the opening game against Wrexham in Helsinki on 18 July.

Ogunneye started for United's Under-21 side in a pre-season match against Altrincham on 31 July. Scanlon, who has 24 caps for Gibraltar and featured in the Premier League 2 play-off final defeat at Brighton in May, missed the game with a minor injury.

It is understood other players with significant experience at Under-21 level, who have also had periods away from United on loan, could move before the transfer deadline on 1 September.