Mikel Arteta just explained the one lesson from last season he's determined not to repeat

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta understands the importance of having a big squad to compete for titles, he said in a recent press conference.

Arsenal face Coventry City on Friday to kick off the Premier League campaign for the 2026-27 season, and the onus will obviously be on Arsenal since they are the reigning champions.

This is the first time in 20 years that they will walk out of the tunnel as Premier League champions in a new season, and it will be a brilliant position for the players, the fans, and everyone related to Arsenal.

However, there were some lessons that were learned despite winning the Premier League title last season, and one of them was to have a big squad, which is definitely needed if a club like Arsenal wants to retain the Premier League title as well as win other trophies over the course of the season.

Arteta talked about it and the importance of players understanding their roles, being cooperative and feeling important. And Arteta's quotes actually were very accurate.

He said: "Well, it depends on the availability and the history of those players, I think there is a lot of factors that count. 22 players and three goalkeepers or four is enough, or maybe you need more, need to understand what happened in the previous season, the injury record of those players, the versatility of certain players.

"I'm sure we'll land on the right number: a bit of both, a lot of competition, the right level of cooperation in the team, and everybody feeling important."

Obviously, Arsenal had a decently sized squad last season, but even then, they struggled to put out a similar level of quality in every starting XI. There were so many big injuries - at one point it was Martin Odegaard, at the other it was Gabriel. At some, it was both.

Some of the defenders had injury problems all season, which is why players like Piero Hincapie really, really showed their importance.

This is basically it. Every club that is challenging for the Premier League title knows that they need a big squad to not only compete in the league race, but also in other trophies.

In England it's slightly more difficult as there are two cups instead of one, and these teams have to manage everything perfectly so that they're able to be successful on all fronts.

Arsenal have been clear about their ambitions this season. They want to win everything. For that to happen, they need a bigger squad.

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