Arsenal endured a catastrophic 2020/21 campaign, finishing eighth in the Premier League and failing to beat Unai Emery's Villarreal in the semi-final of the Europa League.
Mikel Arteta is set for a huge squad overhaul in a bid to get back into contention for a coveted UEFA Champions League spot, a competition they haven't featured in since they were on the end of a 10-2 route from Bayern Munich in February 2017.
In fact, the Gunners struggles last term mean they will not play in any European competition for the first time in 25 years.
Their lowly finish also means that they will be forced to play an extra game in next season's Carabao Cup - joining the competition on August 25, when the second round will take place.
To make matters worse the cup fixture is sandwiched in between their home fixture against current champions of Europe Chelsea (August 22) and their trip to Premier League champions Manchester City (August 28), both of which will be joined by the likes of Liverpool and Tottenham in the league cup's third round fixtures because of their top seven finish.
However, the Gunners do have a slight advantage over the rest of the so-called 'top six' given the fact they will play six fewer games before Christmas while their rivals all feature in the group stages of their respective European competitions.
The lack of fixture congestion is something that teams have taken advantage of in the past - with Chelsea winning the league in 2016/17 in a year that they didn't play in any European competition and Liverpool qualifying for top four that same season despite finishing eighth the prior season.
The North London side will hope they can follow the trend and finish inside the top four come May 2022.
