Five Players Poised for a Standout 2026/27 Season
The transfer window is still very much open, and as fans, we naturally focus on the impact new signings can have in raising the level of the team.
However, there is a reason the phrase "When fit, they'll be like a new signing" has become such a common football cliché in recent seasons.
There is no doubt that fresh arrivals will strengthen the squad and improve the team (more to follow on that in a separate article). Yet the biggest difference this season could come from within. The form, fitness, and availability of several established players may be exactly what is needed to not only retain the Premier League title, but also to push the team to an even higher level.
With the 2026/27 campaign fast approaching, we take a look at five established players who are poised to do just that.
1.Martin Ødegaard
The captain endured a frustrating campaign last season, plagued with injury after injury. It’s hard to foster any rhythm and momentum to your game when game time is constantly interrupted. However, it would be foolish to forget the world class playing ability he possesses after just one season (maybe one-and-a-half) of him not quite at his peak powers.
The skipper still managed to have a big impact in our run-in towards the back end of last season and lifting the Premier League trophy – playing a hefty amount of minutes despite lacking real match fitness/sharpness, and coming up with a crucial assist against West Ham at the London Stadium at a moment where it seemed like again we might let our grasp on the trophy slip (luckily that was not the case).
During the World Cup we saw a player who looked like he was back to full fitness, and really enjoying his football, captaining Norway to their best ever finish at a World Cup. It was a reminder of how good he is and how lucky we are to have him as Arsenal captain.
He’s shown no sign of letting up that form during pre-season, embarrassing Donnarumma with a filthy finish in the Community Shield, and I think this is going to be a season where we see Martin Ødegaard return to his best and potentially hit new heights.
2.Bukayo Saka
Back with a new haircut, another player poised to bounce back to his usual world class level is the Starboy, Bukayo Saka. It’s a story similar to that of Odegaard’s. Two seasons of injury setbacks for the right winger have hampered his ability on the pitch, an achilles injury was the latest towards the of last season and throughout the World Cup. Saka will have been frustrated to have not been able to hit his lofty heights last season. However, he still managed to record three goals and three assists during the World Cup for the Three Lions - despite Thomas Tuchel not considering him fully match fit – and provided some crucial goals and assists to get us over the line at the back end of the Premier League.
He’ll be raring to go and, with some careful minute management over our first few fixtures, will be ready to once again showcase his world-class talent on that right wing for the Arsenal this season.
Photo: BBC.com
3.Ben White
Benny Blanco - forever a legend amongst fans purely for his top-class antics during the trophy parade celebrations. It was a real shame to see him go off with a knee injury against West Ham in May, just as he was looking back to his best after regaining match fitness. I firmly believe had he not picked up that injury he would have been in England’s World Cup squad (and probably played a fair bit too).
Some of us feared we’d seen the last of him in an Arsenal shirt after that, but with our latest injury problems on the right side of defense, there was no chance of the club letting him go this summer. The England international currently looks the fittest – and just as importantly, most tanned - he’s ever been in an Arsenal shirt. With no Timber and no Saliba available for the foreseeable future, he’s going to be a crucial player for us this season and he looks ready to deliver.
Photo: Football London
4.Myles Lewis-Skelly
Myles has already had a standout season during the 2024/25 season where he broke into the first team filling in at left-back. However, this is a different scenario. After establishing himself as a first team starter, he lost his place after the arrival of Piero Hincapié and hardly featured throughout the course of last season. That was until Mikel Arteta finally decided to roll the dice and start him in the players’ preferred position of central midfield against Fulham, after a dip in form from Zubimendi (a likely consequence of being run into the ground all season).
After a subsequent string of remarkable performances given Myles’ age (including a starting in a Champions League final, let’s not forget) it looks like he’s ready to kick-on and play a pivotal role in the centre of the park for us.
Despite some drama before the 2026/27 campaign even beginning yet, with whispers we might have offered him to other PL clubs, he hasn’t let this derail his pre-season momentum. Our midfield is seriously stacked now after the arrival of Bruno Guimaraes from Newcastle this summer, but I fully expect MLS to feature considerably throughout the season. We will need to rotate more effectively to retain our Premier League title, and Myles will be a key part of the midfield this season.
Photo: BBC.com
5.Christhian Mosquera
This one might seem like a bit of a wild card to throw in here, especially with news emerging as I’m currently writing this that a deal for Ezri Konsa has been agreed between Arsenal and Aston Villa. But Mosquera looked like a serious player whenever he was required to step in last season. I was really impressed – and pleasantly surprised – with how well he did in his debut season. It’s not easy coming into a new team and new league at such a young age. Barring one slightly mistimed challenge in the Champions League final against PSG, he didn’t put a foot wrong when filling in at right back for Ben White in our last few games of the season and, overall, played well in the final (besides aforementioned penalty giveaway).
Konsa hasn’t trained in four weeks since the end of the World Cup, so I don’t see him coming in and starting straight away. With both Saliba and Timber currently out, and a need to rotate our right sided defenders across all competitions, I see Mosquera getting a lot of minutes and having a solid impact season.
Honourable Mentions
Mikel Merino: After missing half of last season with a serious foot injury which required surgery, I realised how much we had missed him whilst watching him play an instrumental role as a super sub in Spain’s journey to becoming World Champions during the summer. This one perfectly fits the bill of “like a new signing.” I have no idea in which position it will be (that’s what makes it so great), but no doubt he will come up clutch right when we need him on multiple occasions for us this season.
Kai Havertz: Not too much to say here. We all know what a fit Kai Havertz brings to the table. I expect him to start the season as our first choice striker and hopefully he can put his injury woes of the last two years behind him.If so, it could be a big season for the German international and for us.
Viktor Gyökeres: From one striker to another.Although I expect Kai to start up-front, I do think the two will rotate quite a bit and there will be plenty of game time to go around between the pair. Plus, they seem to do quite well when playing together. He needed a bit of time to adjust to a new league and new team last season, but towards the tail end of the season he seemed to flourish and it all started to click. I expect him to build upon a solid debut campaign for us this season.
Riccardo Calafiori: If – and it’s a big if – he can stay fit, then who knows what will happen. All we know is that it will be exciting, probably involve us all talking about how many goals he’s scoring when he’s supposed to be a left back, and something about how handsome the guy is.
Photo: The Guardian
About the Author
Oliver Reeves is a co-host of the Northbank North podcast, marketing volunteer and a contributor to Arsenal Canada. This Blog was written for Arsenal Canada as an opinion blog feature. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views, and members (unless otherwise stated in the article), of Arsenal Canada. Check out the rest of the Arsenal Canada Volunteer teamhere.
