Arsenal have had a typically up-and-down summer, similar to the season they went through in the English Premier League last campaign. Arsene Wenger will be hoping the final few days of the transfer window will bring about a change seen in the final third of last season.
Losing Robin Van Persie, who signed for Manchester United after refusing to sign a new deal, is a big blow. However you put it, losing last year's top scorer and the club captain is a pill that will be hard to swallow. However, giving away, albeit for a little over £20 million ($31.3 million), your best striker to title rivals United is a pill that is near impossible to swallow.
Wenger admitted he had no choice in the matter; that how much ever he would have liked to see Van Persie leave for a club outside the English Premier League, it finally came down to one suitor and that happened to be, unfortunately for the Gunners and their fans, United.
The positive of the summer, however, has been the quick and high-quality signings of Lukas Podolski, Olivier Giroud and Santi Cazorla, all for typically decent Arsenal prices. The signing of Cazorla, particularly, has been met with a measure of excitement by the club's faithful, not seen for a while. The diminutive playmaker will be seen as the ideal replacement for the departed Cesc Fabregas, while Podolski and Giroud will be expected to fill in for Van Persie.
It remains to be seen whether Wenger will buy another striker, or if he is happy with the current bunch. Although he has stated the summer buys were brought in to offset the possible loss of Van Persie, one suspects Wenger's business in the striking department might not be over, with Athletic Bilbao forward Fernando Llorente a possibility.
A player who is constantly being linked with a move away, however, is Alex Song. Barcelona are reportedly closing in on the Cameroon midfielder for a £15 million ($23.5 million) fee. Song, despite deficiencies in the defensive department, was one of Arsenal's most consistent midfielders; so it remains to be seen how the fans will react to losing yet another important player, in the space of a few days. Yann M'Vila and Nuri Sahin are still likely buys, with the need for the former, especially if Song leaves, more pertinent.
Even with the loss of Van Persie, Arsenal have one of the deepest attacking line-ups in the Premier League. Along with Podolski, who can also play on the left of a 4-3-3 or a 4-2-3-1 formation, and Giroud, the Gunners also have Chamakh as an option upfront, even if he is out of form.
Theo Walcott, who is close to signing a new deal with the club, Gervinho, who had a brilliant preseason, Andrey Arshavin and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain can play out wide, while in the centre Wenger has the options of Cazorla, Thomas Rosicky, Abou Diaby, Aaron Ramsey, Mikel Arteta, Song and Jack Wilshere, when he returns from injury.
The central defensive partnership of Thomas Vermaelen, who is expected to be given the 'cursed' captain's armband, and Laurent Koscielny is solid with Per Mertesacker and Johan Djourou as back up. The injury to Bakary Sagna will be a concern in the right-back area, with only the inexperienced Carl Jenkinson and Nico Yennaris as cover. If Kieran Gibbs can stay injury-free, the left-back slot should be his to lose, although Andre Santos is better going forward.
Lack of strength in depth has been one of the major reason that Arsenal have struggled in the past few seasons, however, that seems to have been corrected this time around and will only get better with the expected arrivals of more new signings and return from injury of key players, particularly Wilshere.
Wenger still has a lot of world to do if he is to mount a sustained challenge for the title, but the mood, even with the Van Persie sale, has not been this positive for quite a few years.
An end to the trophy drought seems more and more likely.