Manchester United icon Gary Neville's brutal assessment of Arsenal's summer transfer business has been proven wrong.
The Gunners splashed in excess of £140million over the summer window, adding six first-team players to Mikel Arteta's squad - all of which were 23-years-old or under at the time of joining.
Since joining, goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale, centre-back Benjamin White, right-back Takehiro Tomiyasu and attacking midfielder Martin Odegaard have all been crucial members of Arteta's starting XI, with youngsters Nuno Tavares and Albert Sambi Lokonga also chipping in with a couple of productive performances.
Ramsdale and White both helped the north Londoners register a clean sheet during the 5-0 win against Norwich City on Boxing Day as Norway captain Odegaard also chipped in with two assists.
Technical director Edu's summer additions have therefore gone a long way to proving Neville's aforementioned verdict wrong.
"I don't know the plan at Arsenal, the recruitment to me has been really poor", Neville said after the Gunners lost to Brentford back in August.
"They are poor at it compared to other clubs, they just are. They have been poor in the last few years, I don't get the strategy, I don't get the direction of how they are taking the team.
"I think they have got a really talented young manager and I have said even if he gets the best out of them, I don't think they can achieve the top four.
"He will come under pressure because every manager in a top-six club that is losing matches will come under pressure and you can see tonight in his sort of interview after the game."
He added: "I never quite know whether there are some problems that are deeper, whether he likes his players and when I worry really when a manager doesn't like some of the dressing room and I can feel that he might not, knowing Mikel Arteta who obviously wants really good professionals who are going to do everything right."
