Erling Haaland has given his verdict on where Arsenal stand compared to Manchester City, while Newcastle have admitted that selling Bruno Guimaraes to the Gunners was not part of their summer plans.
Haaland's Arsenal assessment
After scoring the only goal in a 1-0 win over Coventry City on Saturday, Haaland spoke about how Arsenal compare to his side this season. City have won three from three under new boss Enzo Maresca, who replaced Pep Guardiola, despite some wobbles.
Arsenal ended their 22-year wait for the league title last season, but have not won back-to-back titles in nearly a century. The Gunners have remained relatively stable, keeping the core of their title-winning side while adding several upgrades.
Haaland told Viaplay before the win: "Arsenal have played together for a long time and have built this up over a longer period, a bit like City had when I first joined. We're still in a kind of rebuilding phase, but the transfer window has been fantastic, I have to say. Well done to the club and the people at the club. First and foremost, they've brought in fantastic footballers, but also great people who fit in really well. So well done to the whole club, and especially Khaldoon [Al Mubarak]."
Different states after the transfer window
City have seen the departures of Rodri, Bernardo Silva and John Stones, but have brought in Enzo Fernandez, Elliot Anderson, Iliman Ndiaye and Ayyoub Bouaddi. Arsenal, meanwhile, added Bruno Guimaraes, Ezri Konsa and Christos Tzolis to boost their starting options. Mikel Arteta's team remains largely untouched otherwise, with the manager hoping continuity pays off.
No plan for Guimaraes exit
Newcastle sporting director Ross Wilson has conceded that selling Guimaraes to Arsenal was not part of the club's summer plans. The admission highlights how eager the Brazilian was to join the Gunners after two seasons captaining the Magpies.
Guimaraes joined Newcastle for £40million from Lyon in 2022 and gained a cult-like reputation in the north-east. It looked as though Newcastle would hold firm over their skipper after Sandro Tonali's £100m move to Tottenham, only to agree a £75m sale to Arsenal.
Wilson told TNT Sports before Saturday's draw against Bournemouth: "Anthony Gordon was always in the plan that he was going to move on. We were delighted for him to get such a prestigious move to Barcelona, that was great. I think it was pretty clear most of the second part of last season that Sandro Tonali was going to move on. And for Bruno Guimaraes, I think it's well documented that wasn't a transfer that we were really comfortable with. So there's no point in us saying here today that it was or wasn't. I thought it was something we had to react to, that was the question, because football is all about reacting to different challenges, and that was a new challenge for us, but one hopefully we reacted to as part of our plan."
It was reported that the uncertainty over Guimaraes' future ultimately influenced Eddie Howe's decision to step down as Newcastle boss. Guimaraes has made a seamless switch into Arteta's setup and looks set to have a big role in Arsenal's pursuit of back-to-back Premier League titles.
