Mikel Arteta may now have another David Raya situation on his hands at Arsenal

Arsenal’s transfer business this summer has been very impressive.

The Gunners have already made three new signings – each with different attributes that can help the team in their quest to retain their Premier League title.

Christos Tzolis showed vs Coventry that he is a star in the making.

Ezri Konsa officially signed on Friday and he shores up a backline that is already incredibly stingy.

However, to this point, the most high-profile signing of the summer has been Bruno Guimaraes.

The Brazilian cost Arsenal £75m this summer, but, frighteningly, he may not find it easy to break into this team straight away.

Bruno Guimaraes could follow David Raya path

Bruno Guimaraes has arrived at Arsenal at a time when the midfield is in an interesting state.

Declan Rice is coming off the back of a season where some touted him as a Player of the Year contender, Mikel Arteta is clearly a huge fan of Rice, so it goes without saying that he will start almost every week.

Martin Zubimendi partnered Rice for most of last season, but he’s dropped to the bench in recent times.

That’s due to the re-emergence of Myles Lewis-Skelly as a force in the midfield.

Lewis-Skelly has been incredible in recent times as a midfield player, he earned himself a start in the Champions League final in that position, and he started the opener vs Coventry too where he was very impressive.

Myles Lewis-Skelly had the most touches, played the most passes, won the most duels (joint with Havertz), won the most free-kicks and regained possession more times than any other Arsenal player tonight.

— Sam Dean (@SamJDean) August 21, 2026

That leaves Guimaraes in an interesting position.

Guimaraes is injured at the moment, but when he returns, it’s hard to see how Mikel Arteta could justify dropping Lewis-Skelly.

Simply put, that midfield spot should be Lewis-Skelly’s until he loses it.

Arteta has been in a similar position before.

Back in 2023, Aaron Ramsdale was coming off the back of a stellar season, and David Raya had just signed for the club.

Raya had to sit on the bench for a few weeks before he got a proper chance in the Arsenal side, and that only came after Ramsdale made a couple of errors.

Arteta will trust you until you lose that trust, and, at the moment, despite heavy competition from Guimaraes, it appears that Lewis-Skelly is the man for the midfield.

Much like Raya a few years ago, Guimaraes may need to bide his time before he becomes a starter in this Arsenal side.