For a brief moment over the weekend, Arsenal supporters felt as though they were in a title race.
Saturday evening’s hard-fought 1-0 win at Burnley saw the Gunners move temporarily four points behind Chelsea – although Jose Mourinho’s men still had two matches in hand.
With Arsenal still to play Chelsea at the Emirates, it was looking for a while as though they were back in the mix as the Blues were left struggling to a 0-0 at QPR.
But Cesc Fabregas’ late winner put Chelsea firmly back in the driving seat, and a runners up spot now looks the best the Gunners can hope for.
Arsenal supporters and Arsene Wenger will demand a serious title challenge next term, and that may well depend on the signings he makes in the summer.
Here we have gone through the rumours, and identified five we don’t feel are too worth getting excited about.
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Click on Arsene Wenger to reveal 5 Arsenal summer transfers that won’t happen
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Edinson Cavani
The Uruguayan is hoping for a move in the summer according to various reports, having grown frustrated with being deployed on the wing at Paris St Germain.
Arsenal were linked with him before his move to the French capital, but Arsene Wenger was put off by the whopping £50million asking price.
PSG will demand a similar figure this time around, and Wenger has proved time and again the past he is reluctant to spend such a large sum on one player – even if the money is available.
Iker Casillas
Arsenal have been linked with a new goalkeeper consistently for the best part of two years, whilst Iker Casillas has also been linked with an exit from Real Madrid during the same time period.
The Spaniard still remains at Madrid however, and is considered to be very much a part of the furniture at the ten time European champions, who have insisted he will remain at the club for as long as he sees fit.
David Ospina has also been very impressive since his introduction to the Arsenal side, so it would not come as a surprise if Wenger decided to keep faith with the Colombian as his first choice for the new season.
Mario Suarez
The Spanish midfielder was heavily linked with a move to the Emirates in January, so much so that some reports suggested a deal was already done and dusted.
Atletico Madrid have stated their desire to hang onto their defensive midfielder however, with Diego Simeone viewing him as a key player for the La Liga giants.
In the time since his name was first mentioned, Francis Coquelin has also broken into the Arsenal first team. The young Frenchman has played an integral part in the Gunners climb up the Premier League table, and Wenger looks set to now keep him as the first choice defensive midfielder for next season.
Karim Benzema
The French forward is another who has been both linked with Arsenal, as well as a transfer from Real Madrid consistently over the past couple of seasons.
Reports suggest Real are happy to flog the former Lyon man so they can pursue the likes of Sergio Aguero and Marco Reus, but Arsene Wenger has shown he has plenty of faith in the strikers already at his disposal.
Olivier Giroud will feel he has done enough this season to have justified his position as the club’s top striker, whilst Danny Welbeck, Theo Walcott and Alexis Sanchez are also competing for a central role.
All the talent Wenger already has at his disposal means he will find it difficult to justify spending £50million on another top forward.
Adrien Rabiot
The 20-year-old is considered one of the brightest midfield prospects in Europe, yet this season he has only started 15 matches for Laurent Blanc’s Ligue 1 title chasers.
Whilst Wenger is an admirer, the emergence of Coquelin means Rabiot would no longer be an automatic first choice at the Emirates – especially when you consider the likes of Jack Wilshere, Aaron Ramsey, Mikel Arteta, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Mathieu Flamini and Santi Cazorla are also competing for a central midfield spot.
Rabiot has already said he wants to join a club where he is guaranteed some more playing time, and Arsenal does not look a club that is capable of offering that at this moment.
