The 2021–22 season was

Arsenal Football Club The Arsenal Football Club, commonly known as simply Arsenal, is a professional association football, football club based in London Borough of Islington, Islington, North London, England. They compete in the Premier League, the top tier of ...

's 30th season in the

Premier League The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...

, their 96th consecutive season in the top flight of English football and 105th season in the top flight overall. It began on 1 July 2021 and concluded on 30 June 2022, with competitive matches played between August and May. In addition to the domestic league, Arsenal also participated in the

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout association football, football competition in domestic Football in England, English football. First played during ...

and

EFL Cup The English Football League Cup, often referred to as the League Cup and currently known as the Carabao Cup for sponsorship reasons, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout competition in men's domestic football in England. Orga ...

, but they did not participate in any European competition for the first time since 1995–96, owing to an eighth-place finish the previous season. Managed by

Mikel Arteta Mikel Arteta Amatriain (born 26 March 1982) is a Spanish professional Manager (association football), football manager and former Football player, player who is the manager of club Arsenal F.C., Arsenal. Arteta began his senior club career ...

in his second full season, Arsenal were the youngest team in the Premier League with an average starting age of 24 years and 308 days – more than a whole year younger than the next team. They finished fifth in the Premier League, and qualified for next season's

UEFA Europa League The UEFA Europa League (UEL), usually known simply as the Europa League, is an annual association football, football club competition organised since 1971 by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European footb ...

. The season was documented in the

Amazon Prime Video Amazon Prime Video, known simply as Prime Video, is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming television service owned by Amazon. The service primarily distributes films and television series produced or co-produced by ...

series '' All or Nothing: Arsenal''.

Overview

June and July

On 24 June, Greek centre-back Konstantinos Mavropanos's loan spell at

Bundesliga The Bundesliga (; ), sometimes referred to as the Fußball-Bundesliga () or 1. Bundesliga (), is a professional association football league in Germany and the highest level of the German football league system. The Bundesliga comprises 18 teams ...

club

Stuttgart Stuttgart (; ; Swabian German, Swabian: ; Alemannic German, Alemannic: ; Italian language, Italian: ; ) is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, largest city of the States of Germany, German state of ...

was extended for another season. David Luiz ConfedCup2013Champions17

On 1 July, Arsenal released several players, of which the only first-team player was Brazilian centre-back

David Luiz David Luiz Moreira Marinho (born 22 April 1987) is a Brazilian professional Association football, footballer who plays as a Defender (association football), defender for Campeonato Brasileiro Série A club Fortaleza Esporte Clube, Fortaleza. H ...

, who was at the end of his contract; Luiz later joined Brazilian top-flight side

Flamengo Clube de Regatas do Flamengo (; ), more commonly referred to as simply Flamengo, is a Brazilian multi sports club based in Rio de Janeiro, in the neighborhood of Gávea. It was founded and named after the Flamengo, Rio de Janeiro, Flamengo n ...

in September. At the same time, Spanish midfielder Dani Ceballos and Australian goalkeeper

Mathew Ryan Mathew David Ryan (born 8 April 1992) is an Australian professional soccer player who plays as a goalkeeper for club Lens and captains the Australia national team. Born in Sydney, Ryan played youth football for Marconi Stallions, Blacktown C ...

finished their loan spells and returned to

Real Madrid Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional Football club (association football), football club based in Madrid. The club competes in La Liga, th ...

and

Brighton & Hove Albion Brighton & Hove Albion Football Club, commonly referred to as Brighton, is a professional football club based in Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. Their home gr ...

, respectively, though the latter would join

Real Sociedad Real Sociedad de Fútbol, more commonly referred to as Real Sociedad ( ; ''Royal Society'') in English, and Erreala or Reala in Basque language, Basque, is a Spanish professional sports club in the city of San Sebastián, Donostia / San Sebastián, ...

on 12 July. On 6 July, French midfielder

Matteo Guendouzi Matteo is the Italian form of the given name Matthew. Another form is Mattia. The Hebrew meaning of Matteo is "gift of god". Matteo can also be used as a patronymic surname, often in the forms of de Matteo, De Matteo or DeMatteo, meaning " escend ...

, who spent the entirety of the previous season on loan at

club

Hertha Berlin Hertha, Berliner Sport-Club e. V., commonly known as Hertha BSC () or Hertha Berlin, is a German professional football club based in Berlin. Hertha BSC plays in the 2. Bundesliga, the second tier of German football, following relegation from t ...

, was once again loaned out, this time to

Ligue 1 Ligue 1 (; ), officially known as Ligue 1 McDonald's France, McDonald's for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in France and the highest level of the French football league system. Administered by the Ligue de ...

club

Marseille Marseille (; ; see #Name, below) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Bouches-du-Rhône and of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Regions of France, region. Situated in the ...

for the entire Ligue 1 season. Arsenal's first signing of the summer transfer window came on 10 July, with 21-year-old Portuguese left-back

Nuno Tavares Nuno Albertino Varela Tavares (; born 26 January 2000) is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays as a left-back for Serie A club Lazio and the Portugal national team. Club career Benfica Born in Lisbon of Cape Verdean descent, ...

arriving from Benfica for about £8 million. Arsenal had four players unavailable for pre-season friendlies, as

Bernd Leno Bernd Leno (born 4 March 1992) is a German professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for club Fulham. Early and personal life Bernd Leno was born on 4 March 1992 in Bietigheim-Bissingen, Baden-Württemberg. His father is Russian-Germ ...

Bukayo Saka Bukayo Ayoyinka Temidayo Saka (born 5 September 2001) is an English professional footballer who plays as a right winger for club Arsenal and the England national team. Known for his creativity, dribbling, and work rate, he is regarded as one ...

Kieran Tierney Kieran Tierney (born 5 June 1997) is a Scottish professional footballer who plays as a left-back for Scottish Premiership club Celtic and the Scotland national team. Tierney came through the Celtic youth system and made his first-team debut in ...

, and

Granit Xhaka Granit Xhaka (, born 27 September 1992) is a Swiss professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Bundesliga club Bayer Leverkusen and captains the Switzerland national team. Xhaka began his career with FC Basel and won the Swiss Supe ...

had competed in

Euro 2020 The 2020 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2020 or simply Euro 2020, was the 16th UEFA European Championship, the quadrennial international men's football championship of Europe organised by the Union of E ...

, which ended on 11 July. On 13 July, Arsenal began their pre-season tour of Scotland with a 2–1 defeat to Hibernian. This was followed by a match four days later against defending Scottish champions

Rangers A ranger is typically someone in a law enforcement or military/paramilitary role specializing in patrolling a given territory, called "ranging" or "scouting". The term most often refers to: * Park ranger or forest ranger, a person charged with prot ...

, who were celebrating their 150th anniversary. Arsenal fell behind twice but recovered for a 2–2 draw. Between the two Scottish friendlies, it was announced on 15 July that French centre-back

William Saliba William Alain André Gabriel Saliba (; born 24 March 2001) is a French professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for club Arsenal and the France national team. Regarded as one of the best centre-backs in the world, he is known for his ...

, who spent the second half of last season on loan at

Nice Nice ( ; ) is a city in and the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in France. The Nice agglomeration extends far beyond the administrative city limits, with a population of nearly one million On 19 July, Arsenal made their second acquisition, signing 21-year-old Belgian midfielder

Albert Sambi Lokonga Albert-Mboyo Sambi Lokonga (born 22 October 1999) is a Belgian professional Association football, footballer who plays as a central midfielder for La Liga club Sevilla FC, Sevilla, on loan from Arsenal F.C., Arsenal, and the Belgium national fo ...

from

Anderlecht Anderlecht (; ) is one of the List of municipalities of the Brussels-Capital Region, 19 municipalities of the Brussels-Capital Region, Belgium. Located in the south-western part of the region, it is bordered by the City of Brussels, Forest, B ...

for about £17.2 million. The day after, Arsenal withdrew from the seventh edition of the Florida Cup, citing "a small number of positive

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

tests" among the staff. They had been set to compete with fellow

club Everton,

Serie A The Serie A (), officially known as Serie A Enilive in Italy and Serie A Made in Italy abroad for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Italy and the highest tier of the Italian football league system. Establish ...

club

Inter Milan Football Club Internazionale Milano, commonly referred to as Internazionale () or simply Inter, and colloquially known as Inter Milan in English-speaking countries, is an Italian professional Association football, football List of football ...

, and Colombian top-flight club Millionarios, but they and fellow withdrawals Inter Milan were replaced by

Atlético Nacional Atlético Nacional S. A., best known as Atlético Nacional, is a Colombian professional football club based in Medellín. The club is one of only three clubs to have played in every first division tournament in the country's history, the other ...

, also from the Colombian first division, and

Liga MX Liga MX, also known as Liga BBVA MX for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Mexico and the highest level of the Mexican football league system. Formerly known as Liga Mayor (1943–1949) and also as Primera Divis ...

club

Pumas UNAM Club Universidad Nacional, A.C., simply known as Pumas UNAM, is a professional football club based in Mexico City. The club competes in Liga MX, the top division of Mexican football. Founded in 1954 as Club Deportivo Universidad, and they play ...

. In lieu of the Florida Cup matches, Arsenal organised friendlies at their

London Colney London Colney () is a village and civil parishes in England, civil parish in Hertfordshire, England. It is located to the north of London, close to Junction 22 of the M25 motorway. It is around south-east of St Albans city centre (and within ...

training ground against two other London sides,

Millwall Millwall is a district on the western and southern side of the Isle of Dogs, in east London, England, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It lies to the immediate south of Canary Wharf and Poplar, north of Greenwich and Deptford, east of ...

from the

EFL Championship The English Football League Championship, known simply as the Championship and for sponsorship purposes as Sky Bet Championship, is a professional association football league in England and Wales. Contested by 24 clubs, it is the highest divi ...

on 24 July and newly promoted Premier League side

Watford Watford () is a town and non-metropolitan district with Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough status in Hertfordshire, England, northwest of Central London, on the banks of the River Colne, Hertfordshire, River Colne. Initially a smal ...

on 28 July, with both matches finishing 4–1 to Arsenal. Arsenal concluded the month with the announced signing of 23-year-old English centre-back Ben White on 30 July, who joined from fellow Premier League club

on a £50 million deal.

August

To finish their pre-season, Arsenal participated in the Mind Series pre-season tournament, which supported

Mind The mind is that which thinks, feels, perceives, imagines, remembers, and wills. It covers the totality of mental phenomena, including both conscious processes, through which an individual is aware of external and internal circumstances ...

and other mental health charities, against London rivals Chelsea and

Tottenham Hotspur Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as simply Tottenham (, , , ) or Spurs, is a professional Association football, football club based in Tottenham, North London, England. The club itself has stated that it should always ...

. The Gunners faced Chelsea on 1 August at

home A home, or domicile, is a space used as a permanent or semi-permanent residence for one or more human occupants, and sometimes various companion animals. Homes provide sheltered spaces, for instance rooms, where domestic activity can be p ...

in the first of the two matches. Manager

opted to not start any of the new signings, although Ben White was substituted on at halftime for his debut.

's second-half header equalised after

Kai Havertz Kai Lukas Havertz (born 11 June 1999) is a German professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder or forward for club Arsenal and the Germany national team. Having graduated from Bayer Leverkusen's youth academy in 2016, Havertz ...

's first-half goal, but minutes later,

Tammy Abraham Kevin Oghenetega Tamaraebi Bakumo-Abraham (born 2 October 1997), known as Tammy Abraham, is an English professional Association football, footballer who plays as a Striker (association football), striker for Serie A club AC Milan, on loan from ...

capitalised on an Arsenal defensive error to give Chelsea the lead again. A shot from Joe Willock in the last ten minutes looked to have crossed the goal line, but without the aid of

goal-line technology In association football, goal-line technology (sometimes referred to as a Goal Decision System) is the use of electronic aid to determine if a goal has been scored or not. In detail, it is a method used to determine when the ball has completely ...

, referee

Andre Marriner Andre Marriner (born 1 January 1971)

did not award the goal, and the match ended 2–1 to Chelsea. 1 joe willock 2018

For their last pre-season game, Arsenal played their second Mind Series match, this time

away Away may refer to: Film and television * ''Away'' (2016 film), a British film directed by David Blair * ''Away'' (2019 film), a Latvian animated silent film by Gints Zilbalodis * Away (2025 film), a drama film by Gerard Oms * ''Away'' (TV series ...

to Tottenham Hotspur on 8 August, with Ben White joining fellow new signing

in the starting lineup. After both teams came close to scoring on several occasions, Tottenham broke the deadlock in the 79th minute, as

Son Heung-min Son Heung-min (; born 8 July 1992) is a South Korean professional footballer who plays as a forward for and captains both club Tottenham Hotspur and the South Korea national team. Known for his speed, finishing, two-footedness, and ability ...

finishing off a cross from

Serge Aurier Serge Alain Stéphane Aurier (; born 24 December 1992) is an Ivorian professional footballer who plays as a right-back and captains the Ivory Coast national team. Aurier moved to France as a child and played for Lens, Toulouse and Paris Saint-G ...

for the game's solitary goal. By losing both of the matches, Arsenal finished at the bottom of the tournament, while Chelsea beat Tottenham for the inaugural title on goals scored. After being loaned to fellow

side

Newcastle United Newcastle United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English football. Since th ...

at the end of last season's winter transfer window, Joe Willock had scored eight goals in 14 league appearances, and manager

Steve Bruce Stephen Roger Bruce (born 31 December 1960) is an English professional Manager (association football), football manager and former Association football, player who was a centre-back in a twenty-year playing career. He is currently the head coa ...

was keen on bringing him back. As a result, on 13 August, Arsenal announced the transfer of the academy graduate from the first team to Newcastle United on a six-year deal worth at least £20 million. That same day, Arsenal opened the new

season and headed to the

Brentford Community Stadium The Brentford Community Stadium, currently known as the Grey Technology (Gtech), Gtech Community Stadium for sponsorship reasons, is a Association football, football stadium in Brentford, West London that is the home of Premier League football c ...

in west London to take on newly promoted

Brentford F.C. Brentford Football Club is a professional association football club based in Brentford, England. The team competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. Nicknamed "The Bees", the club was founded in 1889 and played home matc ...

, who were making their Premier League debut. The Gunners began the season without Alexandre Lacazette and captain

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang Pierre-Emerick Emiliano François Aubameyang (born 18 June 1989) is a professional Association football, footballer who plays as a Striker (association football), striker for Saudi Pro League club Al Qadsiah FC, Al-Qadsiah and Captain (associat ...

, who were ruled out a few hours prior to kick-off due to illness, while Ben White and Albert Sambi Lokonga made their competitive debuts for the team. Academy graduate

Folarin Balogun Folarin Jerry Balogun (born July 3, 2001) is an American professional association football, soccer player who plays as a Striker (association football), striker for Ligue 1 club AS Monaco FC, Monaco and the United States men's national soccer te ...

was also named to the starting lineup for his Premier League debut. After

Bryan Mbeumo Bryan Tetsadong Marceau Mbeumo (; born 7 August 1999) is a professional footballer who plays as a right winger for club Brentford. Born in France, he plays for the Cameroon national team. Mbeumo is a product of the Troyes academy, and began ...

hit the post in the 12th minute,

Sergi Canós Sergi Canós Tenés (born 2 February 1997) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as winger for club Valencia. Canós began his career in the Barcelona Academy and transferred to the Liverpool Academy in 2013. A fringe player at bot ...

scored the opening goal of the season 10 minutes later. Meanwhile, Arsenal struggled offensively, with Kieran Tierney having their only shot on target in the first half. In the 73rd minute,

Christian Nørgaard Christian Thers Nørgaard (; born 10 March 1994) is a Danish professional Association football, footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for club Brentford F.C., Brentford and the Denmark national football team, Denmark national team. Be ...

doubled Brentford's lead, heading in a long throw-in from substitute Mads Bech Sørensen. Despite several close opportunities, Arsenal were unable to find a consolation goal, and as a result, they opened the season with a 2–0 loss. On 20 August, Arsenal announced two more signings. Norwegian midfielder

Martin Ødegaard Martin Ødegaard (born 17 December 1998) is a Norwegian professional association football, footballer who plays as a midfielder for and Captain (association football), captains both Premier League club Arsenal F.C., Arsenal and the Norway nati ...

, who had been on loan at Arsenal from

for the second half of last season, joined on a permanent deal worth £34 million. Meanwhile, English goalkeeper

Aaron Ramsdale Aaron Christopher Ramsdale (born 14 May 1998) is an English professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for club Southampton and the England national team. Ramsdale began his senior club career playing for Sheffield United and signed fo ...

joined from

Sheffield United Sheffield United Football Club is a professional football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. The club competes in the Championship, the second tier of English football. They are nicknamed "the Blades" due to Sheffield's history ...

, which had been relegated from the Premier League last season, in a deal worth up to £30 million. Arsenal played the home opener of their Premier League campaign on 22 August against cross-town rivals Chelsea. The match was decided by two first-half goals, a tap-in from

Romelu Lukaku Romelu Lukaku Bolingoli (; born 13 May 1993) is a Belgian professional footballer who plays as a Striker (association football), striker for club SSC Napoli, Napoli and the Belgium national football team, Belgium national team. Lukaku began h ...

and a top-corner strike from Reece James. With a second consecutive 2–0 loss to open the season, Arsenal dropped to 19th, just ahead of last-placed

Norwich City Norwich City Football Club is a professional football club based in Norwich, Norfolk, England. The club competes in the Championship, the second tier of English football. The club was founded in 1902. Since 1935, Norwich have played their h ...

on goal difference. On 25 August, ahead of their first

Carabao Cup The English Football League Cup, often referred to as the League Cup and currently known as the Carabao Cup for sponsorship reasons, is an annual knockout competition in men's domestic football in England. Organised by the English Football L ...

match of the season, Arsenal announced that

Lucas Torreira Lucas Sebastián Torreira Di Pascua (; born 11 February 1996) is a Uruguayan professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for Süper Lig club Galatasaray and the Uruguay national team. Club career Early career Torreira started ...

would once again go out on loan, this time to

team

ACF Fiorentina ACF Fiorentina, commonly referred to as Fiorentina (), is an Italian professional Association football, football List of football clubs in Italy, club based in Florence, Tuscany. The original team was founded by a merger in August 1926, while ...

for the entire 2021–22 season. Torreira had spent the entirety of last season on loan at

La Liga The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Primera División, commonly known as the Primera División or La Liga, and officially known as LaLiga EA Sports for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Spain and the highest ...

team

Atlético Madrid Club Atlético de Madrid, S.A.D. (; meaning "Athletic Club of Madrid"), commonly referred to as Atlético Madrid or simply Atlético, is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid that plays in La Liga. The club play their home game ...

, accumulating 26 appearances and one goal in all competitions; Atlético Madrid went on to win the

league League or The League may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Leagues'' (band), an American rock band * ''The League'', an American sitcom broadcast on FX and FXX about fantasy football * ''League of Legends'', a 2009 multiplayer online battle a ...

Arsenal entered the Carabao Cup in the

second round The second (symbol: s) is a unit of time derived from the division of the day first into 24 hours, then to 60 minutes, and finally to 60 seconds each (24 × 60 × 60 = 86400). The current and formal definition in the International System of Un ...

, facing

Championship In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion. Championship systems Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship. Title match system In this sys ...

side

West Bromwich Albion West Bromwich Albion Football Club (), commonly known as West Brom or The Albion, is a professional association football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of the Englis ...

away at

the Hawthorns The Hawthorns is an All-seater stadium, all-seater association football, football stadium in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England, with a capacity of 26,688. It has been the home of EFL Championship, Championship club West Bromwich Albion F.C. ...

. Aaron Ramsdale made his debut and started in goal, while Martin Ødegaard made his first start as a full-fledged Arsenal player. With West Brom opting to field a team of mostly backup and academy players, Arsenal dominated the game from start to end. In the first half,

scored two goals before

Nicolas Pépé Nicolas Pépé (born 29 May 1995) is a professional association football, footballer who plays as a winger (association football), right winger or forward (association football), forward for La Liga club Villarreal CF, Villarreal. Born in France ...

added a third in stoppage time, tapping the ball in after Aubameyang's failed bicycle kick attempt.

scored five minutes into the second half before Aubameyang completed his hat-trick in the 62nd minute. Substitute Alexandre Lacazette further increased Arsenal's lead seven minutes later, and they won 6–0 to advance to the third round. On 28 August, Arsenal continued their Premier League campaign, facing

Manchester City Manchester City Football Club is a professional association football, football club based in Manchester, England, that competes in the Premier League, the English football league system, top flight of Football in England, English footbal ...

away at the

City of Manchester Stadium The City of Manchester Stadium, currently known as Etihad Stadium for sponsorship reasons, and commonly shortened as The Etihad, is the home of Premier League club Manchester City F.C., Manchester City, with a domestic football capacity of 53, ...

. A seventh-minute header from

İlkay Gündoğan İlkay Gündoğan (; born 24 October 1990) is a German professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for club Manchester City. A youth academy graduate of VfL Bochum, Gündoğan joined 1. FC Nürnberg in 2009. In 2011, he signed for Borus ...

, which Bernd Leno only managed to punch into the roof of the net, was followed by a close-range goal from

Ferran Torres Ferran Torres García (born 29 February 2000) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a forward or winger for La Liga club Barcelona and the Spain national team. Torres began his career at Valencia, where he made his senior debut ...

five minutes later. Referee

Martin Atkinson Martin Atkinson (born 31 March 1971) is an English referee coach and retired professional football referee who officiated primarily in the Premier League. He is a member of the West Riding County Football Association. Atkinson made his first ...

showed Granit Xhaka a red card for a dangerous tackle on

João Cancelo João Pedro Cavaco Cancelo (born 27 May 1994) is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays primarily as a full-back for Saudi Pro League club Al Hilal and the Portugal national team. After coming through Benfica's youth academy, Cance ...

in the 35th minute. With the man advantage, Manchester City added a third goal shortly before halftime, with

Gabriel Jesus Gabriel Fernando de Jesus (born 3 April 1997) is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays as a forward for club Arsenal and the Brazil national team. Jesus began his senior club career at Palmeiras, where he was voted Best Newcomer a ...

redirecting a pass from

Jack Grealish Jack Peter Grealish (born 10 September 1995) is an English professional footballer who plays as a winger or attacking midfielder for club Manchester City and the England national team. Grealish joined Aston Villa at the age of six, and made ...

into the goal. Manchester City added two more goals in the second half, first with Rodri early in the second half, and then with Torres scoring his second goal of the game by beating Leno to head in a cross from

Riyad Mahrez Riyad Karim Mahrez (born 21 February 1991) is a professional footballer who plays as a right winger for Saudi Pro League club Al-Ahli and captains the Algeria national team. He is regarded as one of the best African players of all time. Ma ...

. With the 5–0 result and their third consecutive loss to open their Premier League campaign, Arsenal dropped to 20th, sitting at the bottom of the table and behind both

Wolverhampton Wanderers Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club ( ), commonly referred to as Wolves, is a professional association football, football club based in Wolverhampton, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league s ...

and

on goal difference and goals scored. With the end of the summer transfer window approaching at the end of the month, Arsenal sought to make some final transactions. On 30 August, Willian, who had two years remaining in his contract, left by mutual consent and returned to boyhood club

Corinthians The First Epistle to the Corinthians () is one of the Pauline epistles, part of the New Testament of the Christian Bible. The epistle is attributed to Paul the Apostle and a co-author, Sosthenes, and is addressed to the Christian church in C ...

in Brazil. On the final day of the transfer window, three first team players were loaned out for the rest of the 2021–22 season: Reiss Nelson joined

Feyenoord Feyenoord Rotterdam () is a Netherlands, Dutch professional association football, football club based in Rotterdam, which plays in the Eredivisie, the top tier in Dutch football league system, Dutch football. Founded as Wilhelmina in 1908, the ...

in the

Eredivisie The Eredivisie (; "Honour Division" or "Premier Division") is a professional association football league in the Netherlands and the highest level of the Dutch football league system. The league was founded in 1956, two years after the start o ...

Rúnar Alex Rúnarsson Rúnar Alex Rúnarsson (born 18 February 1995) is an Icelandic professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Danish Superliga club Copenhagen and the Iceland national team. He has also previously played for Dijon, Nordsjælland, KR Re ...

joined

OH Leuven Oh, OH, or Oh! is an interjection, often proclaiming surprise (emotion), surprise. It may refer to: Arts and entertainment Music Albums * Oh! (Girls' Generation album), ''Oh!'' (Girls' Generation album), 2010 * Oh! (ScoLoHoFo album), ''Oh!'' (S ...

in the

Belgian First Division A The Belgian Pro League (; ; ), officially the Jupiler Pro League () for sponsor Jupiler, is a professional association football league in Belgium and the highest level of the Belgian football league system. Contested by 16 clubs from the 2023– ...

, and Héctor Bellerín joined

Real Betis Real Betis Balompié, known as Real Betis () is a Spanish professional association football, football club based in Seville, Andalusia, Spain. It plays in La Liga, the Spanish football league system, top flight of Spanish football. It plays home ...

in La Liga. Meanwhile, the club made one deadline day signing, adding 22-year-old Japanese defender

Takehiro Tomiyasu is a Japanese professional association football, footballer who plays as a Defender (association football), defender for club Arsenal F.C., Arsenal and the Japan national football team, Japan national team. Mainly a full-back (association foo ...

from Serie A side

Bologna Bologna ( , , ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in northern Italy. It is the List of cities in Italy, seventh most populous city in Italy, with about 400,000 inhabitants and 150 different nationalities. Its M ...

on a £16 million deal.

September

Ahead of the international break, Arsenal held a friendly against Brentford, to whom they had lost their first game of the Premier League campaign. The match was held behind closed doors at the

Arsenal Training Centre The Arsenal Training Centre, branded as the Sobha Realty Training Centre for sponsorship reasons, and often referred to as its geographical location London Colney, is the training complex for Arsenal Football Club, located in London Colney, H ...

. After neither team scored in the first half, Arsenal scored twice early in the second half. The opener, which was scored by

Gabriel In the Abrahamic religions (Judaism, Christianity, Islam), Gabriel ( ) is an archangel with the power to announce God's will to mankind, as the messenger of God. He is mentioned in the Hebrew Bible, the New Testament and the Quran. Many Chris ...

, returning from injury, was followed by a free kick from

Alexandre Lacazette Alexandre Armand Lacazette (; born 28 May 1991) is a French professional association football, footballer who plays as a forward (association football), forward for and Captain (association football), captains club Olympique Lyonnais, Lyon. He p ...

at the hour mark.

Cédric Cedric () is a given name invented by Walter Scott in the 1819 novel ''Ivanhoe''. Etymology The invented name is based on ''Cerdic'', the name of a 6th-century Anglo-Saxon king (itself from Brittonic '' Coroticus''). Popularity The name was ...

scored twice in the final 15 minutes to cap off the 4–0 victory and avenge Arsenal's opening day loss. After the international break, Arsenal, sitting at the bottom of the

standings, took on 19th placed

on 11 September. New signing

made his debut, starting at right back, while Aaron Ramsdale started over Bernd Leno in goal. The match remained scoreless at halftime, though Arsenal came close on several occasions. In the 66th minute, an initial shot by

rebounded off the post back to him, and he was immediately tackled by Brandon Williams before he could take a second shot. The ball then ricocheted off several players before Aubameyang tapped it in; a VAR check confirmed that the goal was onside, thus putting Arsenal into the lead and giving them their first Premier League goal of the season. Although Arsenal were unable to score a second goal, the 1–0 win was Arsenal's first of their Premier League campaign, and it elevated them out of the bottom three positions. Aaron Ramsdale kept his place in goal as Arsenal travelled to

Turf Moor Turf Moor is an association football stadium in Burnley, Lancashire, England, which has been the home of Burnley F.C., Burnley Football Club since 1883. This unbroken service makes Turf Moor the second-longest continuously used ground in Footbal ...

to play

Burnley Burnley () is a town and the administrative centre of the wider Borough of Burnley in Lancashire, England, with a 2021 population of 78,266. It is north of Manchester and east of Preston, at the confluence of the River Calder and River B ...

on 18 September. After Ashley Westwood clipped Bukayo Saka just outside of the penalty arc,

scored the ensuing 25-yard free kick in the 30th minute. In the 68th minute,

Matěj Vydra Matěj Vydra (, born 1 May 1992) is a Czech professional footballer who plays as a forward for Czech First League club Viktoria Plzeň. Vydra previously played for FC Chotěboř, Vysočina Jihlava, Baník Ostrava, Club Brugge, Udinese, Watford ...

chased down Ben White's back pass to Ramsdale before being closed down and tackled in the box by the latter. Referee Anthony Taylor awarded Burnley a penalty, having originally thought that Ramsdale made contact with Vydra before the ball, but Taylor reversed his decision after taking a second look at the incident on the pitchside VAR monitor. Neither team had many other close shots on goal, but a second consecutive 1–0 victory improved Arsenal to 13th. In the midweek match, Arsenal faced

EFL League One The English Football League One, known as Sky Bet League One for sponsorship reasons, or simply League One, is a professional association football league in England. EFL League One is the second-highest division of the English Football League an ...

team

AFC Wimbledon AFC Wimbledon is an English professional association football club based in Wimbledon, London, Wimbledon, London Borough of Merton, London. The team competes in , the third tier of the English football league system. The club was founded in ...

on 22 September at home in the

third round Third or 3rd may refer to: Numbers * 3rd, the ordinal form of the cardinal number 3 * , a fraction of one third * 1⁄60 of a ''second'', i.e., the third in a series of fractional parts in a sexagesimal number system Places * 3rd Street (di ...

of the Carabao Cup. Manager

fielded an almost entirely new starting eleven, with Thomas Partey the only holdover from the squad that started against Burnley and

Eddie Nketiah Edward Keddar Nketiah (born 30 May 1999) is an English professional association football, footballer who plays as a Striker (association football), striker for club Crystal Palace F.C., Crystal Palace and the England national football team, Eng ...

making his season debut. Early in the match, Alexandre Lacazette converted a penalty following a foul on

Gabriel Martinelli Gabriel Teodoro Martinelli Silva (born 18 June 2001) is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays as a forward or left winger for club Arsenal and the Brazil national team. Martinelli began his senior career playing for Ituano and sig ...

. Late in the second half, Emile Smith Rowe and Nketiah both scored in a three-minute span to secure the 3–0 victory, advancing Arsenal into the fourth round. The first of two

North London derby The North London derby is the meeting of the association football clubs Arsenal F.C., Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur F.C., Tottenham Hotspur, both of which are based in North London, England. Fans of both clubs consider the other to be their main ...

matches in the Premier League season took place on 25 September, as Arsenal hosted rivals

at the Emirates Stadium. In the 12th minute, Emile Smith Rowe ran in front of

Davinson Sánchez Davinson Sánchez Mina (born 12 June 1996) is a Colombian professional Association football, footballer who plays as a centre-back for club Galatasaray S.K. (football), Galatasaray and the Colombia national football team, Colombia national team ...

to strike in a pass from Bukayo Saka past

Hugo Lloris Hugo Hadrien Dominique Lloris (born 26 December 1986) is a French professional Association football, footballer who plays as a Goalkeeper (association football), goalkeeper for Major League Soccer club Los Angeles FC. Lloris began his career wi ...

. Arsenal were on the break 15 minutes later, with Smith Rowe passing to Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang for Arsenal's second goal. A third goal came in the 34th minute, as Saka scored off the rebound after

Harry Kane Harry Edward Kane (born 28 July 1993) is an English professional Association football, footballer who plays as a Striker (association football), striker for Bundesliga club FC Bayern Munich, Bayern Munich and Captain (association football), c ...

had tackled the ball. With just over 10 minutes to go,

finally scored Tottenham's first goal of the match after receiving

Sergio Reguilón Sergio Reguilón Rodríguez (born 16 December 1996) is a Spanish professional Association football, footballer who plays as a Left back, left-back for Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur F.C., Tottenham Hotspur. He will become a free agent on ...

's cross; Aaron Ramsdale managed to get his left hand to the ball but could not keep it out. In stoppage time, Ramsdale made a leaping save to deny a top-corner shot from

Lucas Moura Lucas Rodrigues Moura da Silva (born 13 August 1992), known as Lucas Moura (), is a Brazilian professional association football, footballer who plays as a Winger (association football), winger or Midfielder (association football), attacking midf ...

. The 3–1 victory was Arsenal's third in a row after losing their first three matches; meanwhile, Tottenham lost their third game in a row after starting off with three wins and topping the league table. As a result, Arsenal moved up to 10th place, tied on points and goal difference with Tottenham in 11th but ahead due to goals scored. After guiding Arsenal to wins in all three of their Premier League matches of the month, manager Mikel Arteta was named as the

Premier League Manager of the Month The Premier League Manager of the Month is an association football award that recognises the best adjudged Premier League manager each month of the season. The winner is chosen by a combination of an online public vote, which contributes to ...

over

Pep Guardiola Josep "Pep" Guardiola Sala (; born 18 January 1971) is a Catalans, Catalan professional Manager (association football), football manager and former Football player, player from Spain who has been the manager of club Manchester City F.C., Ma ...

(

Jürgen Klopp Jürgen Norbert Klopp (; born 16 June 1967) is a German football executive and former Manager (association football), manager and Football player, player. He is widely regarded as one of the best football managers in the world. Klopp has been ...

(

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

Graham Potter Graham Stephen Potter (born 20 May 1975) is an English professional association football, football Manager (association football), manager who is the head coach of Premier League club West Ham United F.C., West Ham United. In a 13-year playing ...

(

), and

Dean Smith Dean Edwards Smith (February 28, 1931 – February 7, 2015) was an American men's college basketball Coach (basketball), head coach. Called a "coaching legend" by the Basketball Hall of Fame, he coached for 36 years at the University of North C ...

(

Aston Villa Aston Villa Football Club (commonly referred to as simply Villa) is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club, founded in 1874, compete in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The team have p ...

). This was Arteta's first Manager of the Month award and the first for an Arsenal manager since

Arsène Wenger Arsène Charles Ernest Wenger (born 22 October 1949) is a French former association football, football Manager (association football), manager and football player, player who is currently serving as FIFA's Chief of Global Football Development. ...

's October 2015 award.

October

Arsenal's first match of the month was a Premier League match away to

at the Amex Stadium on 2 October.

played in place of

, who had been ruled out for up to three months after suffering a knee injury in the match against

. In the last few minutes of the match, penalty claims from Brighton for a shove on

Shane Duffy Shane Patrick Michael Duffy (born 1 January 1992) is an Irish professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for club Norwich City and the Republic of Ireland national team. Duffy came through the youth academy at Everton, where he comp ...

were dismissed by VAR. Neither team was able to score all game, though Brighton had the majority of possession as well as 21 shots to Arsenal's eight; of these shots, both teams had two on target. During the international break, Arsenal hosted fellow London side

Queens Park Rangers F.C. Queens Park Rangers Football Club, commonly abbreviated to QPR, is a professional association football club based in Shepherd's Bush, West London, England. The team currently compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of the English fo ...

from the

for a closed-door friendly match at the

training ground on 6 October. Arsenal won 3–2, although the goal scorers for either team were not made publicly known. On 18 October, Arsenal took on south London side

Crystal Palace Crystal Palace may refer to: Places Canada * Crystal Palace Complex (Dieppe), a former amusement park now a shopping complex in Dieppe, New Brunswick * Crystal Palace Barracks, London, Ontario * Crystal Palace (Montreal), an exhibition buildin ...

, managed by former Arsenal player

Patrick Vieira Patrick Paul Vieira (; born 23 June 1976) is a French professional association football, football manager and former player who is the head coach of Serie A club Genoa CFC, Genoa. He was named in the FIFA 100 of the greatest living footballers i ...

. In the eighth minute, a shot from

was parried by goalkeeper

Vicente Guaita Vicente Guaita Panadero (; born 10 January 1987) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for La Liga club Celta. He appeared in 176 La Liga matches over eight seasons with Valencia and Getafe, as well as a season on ...

, who beat

James McArthur James McFarlane McArthur (born 7 October 1987) is a Scottish former professional Association football, footballer who played as a Midfielder#Central midfielder, central midfielder. McArthur started his career at Hamilton Academical F.C., Hamil ...

to tap in the rebound. Crystal Palace equalized early in the second half; after

Jordan Ayew Jordan Pierre Ayew (born 11 September 1991) is a Ghanaian professional Association football, footballer who plays as a Winger (association football), winger or Forward (association football), forward for club Leicester City F.C., Leicester Cit ...

dispossessed

Thomas Partey Thomas Teye Partey (born 13 June 1993) is a Ghanaian professional Association football, footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for club Arsenal F.C., Arsenal and the Ghana national football team, Ghana national team. Partey began his ...

Christian Benteke Christian Benteke Liolo (born 3 December 1990) is a Belgian professional footballer who plays as a striker for Major League Soccer club D.C. United. Benteke began his career at Standard Liège, playing a part in their 2008–09 Belgian Firs ...

scored with the rebound. In the 73rd minute, after

Conor Gallagher Conor John Gallagher (born 6 February 2000) is an English professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for club Atlético Madrid and the England national team. Beginning his career with Chelsea, Gallagher spent time on loan at EFL Champi ...

dispossessed Albert Sambi Lokonga and Crystal Palace were on the break,

Odsonne Édouard Odsonne Édouard (born 16 January 1998) is a French professional footballer who plays as a striker for Premier League club Crystal Palace. Having progressed through the youth ranks of AF Bobigny, Édouard signed with Paris Saint-Germain in Ju ...

scored off the underside of the crossbar to give Crystal Palace the lead. Arsenal finally drew even in the fifth minute of stoppage time, with a shot from Ben White deflected by Guaita into the path of substitute

for a tap-in, and the game ended 2–2. In their second Premier League match at

in four days, 12th-placed Arsenal hosted 13th-placed

. Left-back Kieran Tierney missed his first Premier League match of the season due to a bruised right ankle, thus giving

his first Premier League start. Thomas Partey scored a header off

Emile Smith Rowe Emile Smith Rowe (born 28 July 2000) is an English professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for club Fulham. He was a highly regarded youth player at Arsenal, whilst also playing a key part for England in their successful ...

's corner in the 23rd minute for his first Arsenal goal. In first-half stoppage time, referee

Craig Pawson Craig Pawson (born 2 March 1979) is an English professional football referee who officiates primarily in the Premier League, having been promoted to the panel of Select Group Referees in 2013, as well as in the Football League. He is based in ...

consulted the pitchside VAR monitor for Matt Targett's challenge on Alexandre Lacazette and awarded Arsenal a penalty. Former Arsenal goalkeeper

Emiliano Martínez Damián Emiliano Martínez Romero (born 2 September 1992), also known as Dibu, is an Argentine professional association football, footballer who plays as a Goalkeeper (association football), goalkeeper for club Aston Villa F.C., Aston Villa a ...

saved Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang's initial shot by diving down to his left, but Aubameyang tapped in the rebound. Ten minutes into the second half, Smith Rowe intercepted a pass from

John McGinn John McGinn (born 18 October 1994) is a Scottish association football, footballer who plays as a midfielder for club Aston Villa F.C., Aston Villa, whom he Captain (association football), captains, and the Scotland national football team, Scot ...

Matty Cash Matthew Stuart Cash (born 7 August 1997) is a professional footballer who plays as a right-back for club Aston Villa and the Poland national team. Cash started his career at Wycombe Wanderers and later the FAB Academy before he signed his fi ...

, with the ball rebounding to Albert Sambi Lokonga, who passed out wide to Tavares. Tavares's through pass to Aubameyang was then flicked forward to Smith Rowe, who continued his run before eventually firing a shot that deflected off

Tyrone Mings Tyrone Deon Mings (born 13 March 1993) is an English professional Association football, footballer who plays as a centre-back for club Aston Villa F.C., Aston Villa and the England national football team, England national team. Mings started h ...

and the near post past Martínez. Aston Villa were able to score a consolation goal late in the match when

Leon Bailey Leon Patrick Bailey (born 9 August 1997) is a Jamaican professional Association football, footballer who plays as a Winger (association football), right winger for club Aston Villa F.C., Aston Villa and the Jamaica national football team, Jamai ...

's run along the edge of the box took the ball into the path of Jacob Ramsey, whose first-time shot found the top corner, but Arsenal hung on for the 3–1 victory. In the midweek match at home against fellow Premier League club

Leeds United Leeds United Football Club is a professional football club based in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. The team compete in the Premier League, the top tier of the English football league system. Leeds United have won the League Championship th ...

on 26 October in the

fourth round Fourth or the fourth may refer to: * the ordinal form of the number 4 * ''Fourth'' (album), by Soft Machine, 1971 * Fourth (angle), an ancient astronomical subdivision * Fourth (music), a musical interval * ''The Fourth'', a 1972 Soviet drama ...

of the EFL Cup, Bernd Leno made his first start in goal since the previous round's match against

a month ago. Neither team scored in the first half, but ten minutes into the second half,

Calum Chambers Calum Chambers (born 20 January 1995) is an English professional Association football, footballer who plays as a centre-back or right-back for club Cardiff City F.C., Cardiff City. Originally a member of Southampton F.C., Southampton's Southa ...

was substituted on in place of an injured Ben White before scoring the opening goal 23 seconds later. After Emile Smith Rowe's corner was headed around the box by

and Nicolas Pépé, Chambers beat Jack Harrison to the header; referee

Andre Marriner Andre Marriner (born 1 January 1971)

confirmed that the ball had crossed the goal line before

Illan Meslier Illan Stéphane Meslier (; ) (born 2 March 2000) is a French professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for club Leeds United. Early life Illan Stéphane Meslier was born on 2 March 2000 in Lorient, Brittany. Club career Lorient Meslie ...

could parry the ball away. On 69 minutes, Arsenal doubled their lead when Nketiah intercepted a backwards header from Leeds captain Liam Cooper to Meslier, guided the ball over Meslier, and slotted in the goal from a narrow angle; this was Nketiah's second goal in as many appearances all season. The 2–0 result advanced Arsenal to the quarter-finals, in which they were drawn at home against League One team

Sunderland Sunderland () is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is a port at the mouth of the River Wear on the North Sea, approximately south-east of Newcastle upon Tyne. It is the most p ...

. Arsenal finished the month away to

Leicester City Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area, and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest city in the East Midlands with a popula ...

at the

King Power Stadium King Power Stadium is a football stadium in the city of Leicester, East Midlands, England, and the home of Leicester City. The stadium opened in 2002 as the Walkers Stadium and has a capacity of 32,259. The club attracted worldwide attenti ...

on 30 October, with the match being decided by two early goals. After

Daniel Amartey Daniel Amartey (born 21 December 1994) is a Ghanaian professional footballer who most recently played as a defender or midfielder for Süper Lig club Beşiktaş and the Ghana national team. He is currently a free agent. A graduate of Internat ...

nearly scored an own goal in the opening minute, Gabriel scored a header, and his first goal of the season, in the fifth minute on a corner from Bukayo Saka, who was making his 100th senior club appearance. In the eighteenth minute, Alexandre Lacazette received a pass from Saka before running into a crowd of Leicester defenders in the box. After

Jonny Evans Jonathan Grant Evans (born 3 January 1988) is a Northern Irish former professional Association football, footballer who played as a centre-back. Evans started his career at Manchester United F.C., Manchester United, having progressed throug ...

dispossessed Lacazette, Luke Thomas's attempted clearance fell to Emile Smith Rowe, who fired in the second goal. Meanwhile, Aaron Ramsdale made several key saves in a performance that earned him his first Man of the Match as an Arsenal player. Among these was a leaping save near the end of the first half to parry a

James Maddison James Daniel Maddison (born 23 November 1996) is an English professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for club Tottenham Hotspur and the England national team. Maddison began his career with Coventry City before joining ...

free kick onto the crossbar before Evans's shot from the rebound was cleared off the line by Thomas Partey. The 2–0 victory extended Arsenal's unbeaten streak since the beginning of September to seven matches in the league and nine in all competitions. Arsenal's successful defensive performances led to Aaron Ramsdale being nominated for the Premier League's Player of the Month Award, which was ultimately won by

Mohamed Salah Mohamed Salah Hamed Mahrous Ghaly (, ; born 15 June 1992), also known as Mo Salah, is an Egyptian professional Association football, footballer who plays as a right winger or Forward (association football), forward for club Liverpool F.C., L ...

November

On 7 November, Arsenal faced

. In the seventh minute, Ainsley Maitland-Niles dispossessed

Ismaïla Sarr Ismaïla Sarr (born 25 February 1998) is a Senegalese professional association football, footballer who plays as a winger (association football), winger or forward (association football), forward for Premier League club Crystal Palace F.C., Cryst ...

before

's chipped ball was deflected by Ben Foster to

. Aubameyang's first touch then took the ball into the path of

, whose shot went in between

Nicolas Nkoulou Nicolas Julio Nkoulou Ndoubena (born 27 March 1990), known as Nicolas Nkoulou, is a Cameroonian professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Sakaryaspor on loan from Turkish TFF 1. Lig club Amedspor and the Cameroon national team. ...

and a recovering Foster for what seemed to be the opening goal. However, while Saka was in front of Nkoulou, he was also behind of Foster, thus making him offside, and the goal was disallowed. In the 34th minute, referee

Kevin Friend Kevin Friend (born 8 July 1971)
confirmation at

Danny Rose ran into Lacazette, who was trying to control an errant shot from Maitland-Niles. Foster then saved Aubameyang's penalty before recovering the rebound. In the 56th minute, Ben White regained possession of the ball in the Arsenal offensive third and ran forward, evading

Juraj Kucka Juraj Kucka (; born 26 February 1987), also known by his nickname Kuco (), is a former Slovak professional footballer who last played as a midfielder for Slovak club Slovan Bratislava. Club career Early career Kucka made his Corgoň Liga debut ...

and

Joshua King Josh or Joshua King may refer to: * Josh King (basketball) (born 1985), American basketball coach * Josh King (rugby league) (born 1995), Australian rugby league footballer * Joshua King (mathematician) Joshua King (16 January 1798 – 1 Sept ...

before running into

Moussa Sissoko Moussa Sissoko (born 16 August 1989) is a French professional Association football, footballer who plays as a midfielder for and captain (association football), captains club Watford F.C., Watford. He is a Midfielder#Box-to-box midfielder, bo ...

. The ball then fell to

on the edge of the box, who fired into the far corner for what would be the match's only goal, as well as Smith Rowe's third goal in as many Premier League matches.

nearly scored a second goal on 73 minutes, but Aubameyang, who had been in an offside position, touched the ball right before it crossed the goal line. In the 89th minute, Kucka, who was already on a yellow card after a foul on Lacazette in the first half, was shown a second yellow card for a foul on

and was sent off. The 1–0 victory continued Arsenal's rise up the table, as they moved into fifth place. After the international break, Arsenal travelled to

Anfield Anfield is a Association football, football stadium in the area of Anfield (suburb), Anfield, Liverpool, England, which has been the home of Liverpool F.C. since its formation in 1892. The stadium has a seating capacity of 61,276, making it the ...

to take on

on 20 November. After there was contact between

and

Sadio Mané Sadio Mané (born 10 April 1992) is a Senegalese professional footballer who plays as a forward or left winger for Saudi Pro League club Al-Nassr and the Senegal national team. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest African players o ...

as the players were challenging for a header, managers

and

engaged in a verbal dispute on the sideline, for which referee Michael Oliver showed a yellow card to both managers. After Mané and

were both denied by point-blank saves from Aaron Ramsdale earlier in the game, Mané headed a

Trent Alexander-Arnold Trent John Alexander-Arnold (born 7 October 1998), also known mononym, mononymously as Trent, is an English professional Association football, footballer who plays as a right-back or midfielder for La Liga club Real Madrid CF, Real Madrid and ...

free kick into the ground and away from Ramsdale for the opening goal in the 39th minute. Early in the second half,

Diogo Jota Diogo José Teixeira da Silva (born 4 December 1996), known as Diogo Jota, is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays as a forward or left winger for club Liverpool and the Portugal national team. Jota is known for his clinical finis ...

added a second goal for Liverpool after intercepting a backwards pass from

. In the 73rd minute, a fast break by Liverpool was finished off with Mané centering the ball for Salah to finish from close range. Four minutes later,

Takumi Minamino is a Japanese professional Association football, footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder or Winger (association football), winger for Ligue 1 club AS Monaco FC, Monaco and the Japan national football team, Japan national team. Minam ...

, having just been substituted into the match, slotted home Alexander-Arnold's cross at the back post after just 48 seconds on the pitch. The 4–0 defeat ended Arsenal's unbeaten run at eight matches in the league and 10 in all competitions, although they remained in fifth. Arsenal rebounded seven days later against bottom-of-the-table

and new manager

Eddie Howe Edward John Frank Howe (born 29 November 1977) is an English professional football manager and former player, who is the manager of Premier League club Newcastle United. A centre-back during his playing career, Howe spent most of his playing ...

, who made his debut in the Newcastle dugout; Howe had missed his first match the previous week in quarantine after testing positive for COVID-19. Neither team was able to score in the first half.

Jonjo Shelvey Jonjo Shelvey (born 27 February 1992) is an English professional footballer who most recently played as a central midfielder for EFL Championship club Burnley. Shelvey began his career at Charlton Athletic, becoming their youngest-ever player ...

came closest for Newcastle in the 30th minute, with his shot parried onto the crossbar by Aaron Ramsdale. Shortly before halftime, after Emile Smith Rowe's header was saved by

Martin Dúbravka Martin Dúbravka (born 15 January 1989) is a Slovak professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for club Newcastle United and the Slovakia national team. He is widely considered one of the best Slovakian footballers of all time. After p ...

, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang missed from close range and kicked the rebound against the outside of the post. In the 56th minute, Bukayo Saka passed back to Smith Rowe, who passed infield to

; meanwhile, Saka had continued his run forward, and after receiving the ball from Tavares, he fired a low shot into the far corner past Dúbravka for the opening goal. Eight minutes later, Saka was forced off with an injury and was replaced by

. Less than two minutes after coming on, Martinelli finished off a chipped pass from Takehiro Tomiyasu with a first-time volley to bolster Arsenal's lead. Arsenal maintained their 2–0 lead to win the match and stay in fifth place.

December

Arsenal began December with a midweek fixture at

Old Trafford Old Trafford () is a football stadium in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, and is the home of Manchester United. With a capacity of 74,197, it is the largest club football stadium (and second-largest football stadium overall after W ...

on 2 December away to

Manchester United Manchester United Football Club, commonly referred to as Man United (often stylised as Man Utd) or simply United, is a professional association football, football club based in Old Trafford (area), Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, Engl ...

, who were led by caretaker manager

Michael Carrick Michael Carrick (born 28 July 1981) is an English professional Association football, football coach and former player who was most recently the head coach of club Middlesbrough F.C., Middlesbrough. He is considered as one of the best midfield ...

in his last game before interim manager

Ralf Rangnick Ralf Dietrich Rangnick (; born 29 June 1958) is a German professional football coach, executive, and former player who is currently the manager of the Austria national team. Rangnick began his coaching career in 1983, succeeding his career as a ...

taking over. From a 13th minute corner by

scored the opening goal from outside of the box, with the assist from Mohamed Elneny after

Harry Maguire Jacob Harry Maguire (born 5 March 1993) is an English professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for club Manchester United and the England national team. Maguire came through the youth system at Sheffield United before graduating t ...

's initial clearance. Referee

was initially hesitant to award the goal, as goalkeeper

David de Gea David de Gea Quintana (; born 7 November 1990) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for club Fiorentina. Considered one of the best keepers of his generation, he is known for his reflexes and shot-stopping capabilitie ...

lay injured after having his ankle stepped on by his teammate

Fred Fred or FRED may refer to: People * Fred (name), including a list of people and characters with the name Mononym * Fred (cartoonist) (1931–2013), pen name of Fred Othon Aristidès, French * Fred (footballer, born 1949) (1949–2022), Fred ...

, but the goal was made official after VAR review. Shortly before halftime, Manchester United equalized after

Jadon Sancho Jadon Malik Sancho (born 25 March 2000) is an English professional Association football, footballer who plays as a Winger (association football), winger for Premier League club Chelsea F.C., Chelsea, on loan from Manchester United F.C., Manches ...

passed infield to Fred, who squared the ball for

Bruno Fernandes Bruno Miguel Borges Fernandes (; born 8 September 1994) is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for club Manchester United, which he captains, and the Portugal national team. Fernandes started his career at Italia ...

to slot it in past Aaron Ramsdale. In the 52nd minute, the home side took the lead as

Cristiano Ronaldo Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro (; born 5 February 1985) is a Portuguese professional Association football, footballer who plays as a Forward (association football), forward for and Captain (association football), captains both Saudi Pr ...

finished off

Marcus Rashford Marcus Rashford (born 31 October 1997) is an English professional Association football, footballer who plays as a Forward (association football), forward for Premier League club Aston Villa F.C., Aston Villa, on Loan (association football), lo ...

's low cross. However, Arsenal equalized less than two minutes later; on the right flank,

received

's through pass before firing a low cross into the box for Ødegaard, whose shot curled in past the reach of de Gea. In the 68th minute, Atkinson initially did not award a penalty to Manchester United after Ødegaard's tackle on Fred, but he reversed his decision after consulting the pitchside VAR monitor. Ronaldo scored again, converting the penalty for his 800th career goal and the decisive goal of the match. Despite the 3–2 defeat, Arsenal remained in fifth place for the fourth consecutive matchweek. Four days later, Arsenal lost their second game in a row after playing away to Everton at

Goodison Park Goodison Park is a Association football, football stadium in Walton, Liverpool, Walton, Liverpool, England, it was the home of Premier League club Everton F.C., Everton from 1892 until 2025. It is now the home of Everton F.C. (women), Everton's ...

, with

making his return from injury. Minutes before halftime, a free kick from

Andros Townsend Andros Darryl Townsend (born 16 July 1991) is an English professional footballer who plays as a right winger for Turkish Süper Lig club Antalyaspor. A graduate of the Tottenham Hotspur academy, Townsend was initially loaned out to several Le ...

was headed in by

Richarlison Richarlison de Andrade (born 10 May 1997), known simply as Richarlison (), is a Brazilian professional Association football, footballer who plays as a Forward (association football), forward for club Tottenham Hotspur F.C., Tottenham Hotspur ...

, but the goal was disallowed as the latter was found to be offside by VAR. However, in first-half stoppage time, Arsenal scored the opening goal with Martin Ødegaard slotting in a cross from

with a side-foot volley. In the 56th minute, Richarlison seemed to have scored after receiving a pass from

Abdoulaye Doucouré Abdoulaye Doucouré (born 1 January 1993) is a professional association football, footballer. Born in France, he played for the Mali national football team, Mali national team. Early life Doucouré was born in Meulan-en-Yvelines, to Malian paren ...

, but he was ruled offside by VAR again. Richarlison was finally able to score in the 80th minute, as he headed in the rebound after a Demarai Gray shot from outside the box hit the crossbar. After

missed a close-range header in the 84th minute, Gray scored Everton's second goal of the game in the second of six minutes of stoppage time. Gray's winning strike, which came from a similar location to the one that hit the crossbar, hit off the far post and into the goal, resulting in a 2–1 loss for Arsenal. On 11 December, Arsenal returned home to the

Emirates Stadium The Emirates Stadium (known as Arsenal Stadium for UEFA competitions) is a association football, football stadium in Holloway, London, England. It has been the home stadium of Arsenal F.C., Arsenal Football Club since its completion in 2006. ...

for a match against a depleted

Southampton Southampton is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. It is located approximately southwest of London, west of Portsmouth, and southeast of Salisbury. Southampton had a population of 253, ...

side, who were without several key outfield players and both first-choice goalkeepers, with emergency goalkeeper

Willy Caballero Wilfredo Daniel Caballero Lazcano (born 28 September 1981) is an Argentine professional football coach and former goalkeeper. He is currently the assistant coach of club Chelsea. He spent most of his career in Spain, representing Elche and M ...

starting after signing earlier in the week. Meanwhile, Arsenal themselves started without captain

, who had reportedly been dropped to the bench for a 'disciplinary breach' by manager

. In the 21st minute, Arsenal scored first after playing out from the back, as a series of passes down the length of the pitch culminated with

's low cutback being finished off by

. Six minutes later, Arsenal doubled their lead. After Kieran Tierney received

's high pass at the back post, his cross was blocked by

Tino Livramento Valentino Francisco Livramento (born 12 November 2002) is an English professional footballer who plays as a full-back for club Newcastle United and the England national team. Early life Born in Croydon, Greater London, Livramento joined Chels ...

; however, Tierney recovered the rebound and headed the ball to Martin Ødegaard, who scored a header for his third goal in as many matches. After

had a tap-in disallowed for being offside in the 59th minute, he headed in a corner from Gabriel Martinelli three minutes later. Arsenal continued to apply pressure to Southampton in the search of a fourth goal, but both Martinelli and Saka hit the posts with their shots. Meanwhile, Aaron Ramsdale made six saves to secure the clean sheet and a 3–0 win. The day before the home match against

West Ham United West Ham United Football Club is a professional Association football, football club based in Stratford, London, Stratford, East London, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English f ...

on 15 December, the club announced that Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang would be stripped of the club captaincy due to repeated disciplinary breaches and would not be considered for the West Ham match. Manager Mikel Arteta elaborated that the captaincy would be shared among a "'leadership group' of senior players," including Alexandre Lacazette and Granit Xhaka, the latter of whom had preceded Aubameyang as captain. After Alexandre Lacazette had assumed the captaincy role against Southampton, manager Mikel Arteta opted to retain him as captain against West Ham. Three minutes into the second half, Lacazette played a through pass to Gabriel Martinelli, who ran past the West Ham defense and curled in the opening goal. In the 67th minute,

Vladimír Coufal Vladimír Coufal (; born 22 August 1992) is a Czech professional footballer who plays as a right-back most recently for club West Ham United and for the Czech Republic national team. He has previously played for Bílovec, Hlučín, Opava, Slo ...

, who was already on a yellow card after contact with Kieran Tierney in the 11th minute, was sent off after a second yellow card following a tackle on Lacazette in the box. For the same foul, referee Anthony Taylor awarded Arsenal a penalty, which Lacazette took but was saved by

Łukasz Fabiański Łukasz Marek Fabiański (born 18 April 1985) is a Polish professional association football, footballer who plays as a Goalkeeper (association football), goalkeeper for club West Ham United F.C., West Ham United. He will become a free agent on ...

. On 87 minutes, after Takehiro Tomiyasu dispossessed

Saïd Benrahma Mohamed Saïd Benrahma (; born 10 August 1995) is an Algerian professional Association football, footballer who plays as a Winger (association football), left winger for Saudi Pro League club Neom SC, Neom, and the Algeria national football team, ...

, Bukayo Saka recovered the ball before passing it near the center line to substitute Emile Smith Rowe, who continued his run and scored a second goal for Arsenal. The 2–0 victory moved Arsenal into the top four for the first time all season. With a rise in positive

test results forcing the postponement of the other five matches scheduled for 18 December, Arsenal's match away to an injury-stricken

Elland Road Elland Road, or Elland Road Stadium, is a football stadium in Beeston, Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, which has been the Home (sports), home of Leeds United F.C., Leeds United since the club's formation in 1919. The stadium is the List of foot ...

was the only remaining

fixture that day. In the 16th minute, after Alexandre Lacazette dispossessed

Adam Forshaw Adam John Forshaw (born 8 October 1991) is an English professional association football, footballer who plays as a midfielder for club Blackburn Rovers F.C., Blackburn Rovers. Forshaw began his career in the Everton F.C. Reserves and Academy, a ...

in the box, Gabriel Martinelli recovered the loose ball and fired it in first time for the opening goal; this goal was Arsenal's 7,000th scored in the top flight of English football. Twelve minutes later, Granit Xhaka intercepted a pass from

Stuart Dallas Stuart Dallas (born 19 April 1991) is a Northern Irish former professional Association football, footballer who played as a midfielder or Full back (association football), full-back. He had also been deployed as a Winger (association football), ...

intended for

Mateusz Klich Mateusz Andrzej Klich (; born 13 June 1990) is a Polish professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Major League Soccer club Atlanta United. Club career Cracovia Born in Tarnów, Klich debuted in the Ekstraklasa in November 2008. Dur ...

near midfield and played a through pass to Martinelli, who scored to double Arsenal's lead. Three minutes from halftime, Bukayo Saka scored the third goal after his shot deflected off Klich's foot and past

. Notably, Arsenal's 11 shots on target in the first half were the most in the first half of all Premier League matches since the 2003–04 season (also the season of the Invincibles), when Opta began recording such statistics. After Ben White's tackle on Joe Gelhardt, referee

Andre Marriner Andre Marriner (born 1 January 1971)

awarded Leeds a penalty, which

Raphinha Raphael Dias Belloli (born 14 December 1996), known as Raphinha, is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays as a winger or forward for La Liga club Barcelona and the Brazil national team. Known for his work rate, pace, finishing and c ...

converted in the 75th minute. Substitute Emile Smith Rowe capped off the match by finishing off a pass from Martin Ødegaard to give Arsenal a 4–1 win. On 21 December, Arsenal hosted League One side

in the

quarter-finals, with

making his 100th appearance for Arsenal.

's corner in the 17th minute was headed towards goal by Rob Holding, only for

Lee Burge Lee Stephen Burge (born 9 January 1993) is an English professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for club Northampton Town. Club career Coventry City On 30 January 2013, Burge joined Conference National side Nuneaton Town on loan for a ...

to parry the ball into the path of

, who continued his three-match run of scoring in the EFL Cup and put in the tap-in from close range. In the 27th minute, Pépé received a cutback from Cédric and fired a shot, which was deflected by

Callum Doyle Callum Craig Doyle (born 3 October 2003) is an English professional footballer who plays as a defender for Premier League club Manchester City. Beginning his career with Manchester City, Doyle spent loan spells with Sunderland, Coventry City, a ...

into the roof of the net to double Arsenal's lead. However, Sunderland scored four minutes later, as

Nathan Broadhead Nathan Paul Broadhead (born 5 April 1998) is a Welsh professional footballer who plays as a forward for club Ipswich Town and the Wales national team. Club career Everton Broadhead joined Everton at the age of 10 from Wrexham. On 6 December ...

received a through pass from

Elliot Embleton Elliot John Embleton (born 2 April 1999) is an English professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Carlisle United. He has also played for Sunderland and Blackpool, with loan spells spent at Grimsby Town, Blackpool and Derby County, an ...

and lifted the ball over an onrushing Bernd Leno into the goal. Four minutes into the second half, Nketiah scored his second goal, stepping in front of Doyle to redirect a low cross from

. In the 58th minute, Nketiah completed his hat trick, beating Tom Flanagan to a pass from Pépé and scoring with a backheel finish. In second half stoppage time, Pépé once again provided the assist, this time to

Charlie Patino Charlie Michael Patiño (born 17 October 2003) is an English professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Segunda División club Deportivo La Coruña. Club career Early career Born in Watford, Patino started his career at St Albans Cit ...

, who had been substituted on ten minutes prior for his senior team debut and slid the ball in past Burge. The 5–1 result advanced Arsenal to the semi-finals for the first time since the 2017–18 edition, while Nketiah's hat trick made him the joint top goalscorer with

Brentford Brentford is a suburban town in West (London sub region), West London, England and part of the London Borough of Hounslow. It lies at the confluence of the River Brent and the River Thames, Thames, west of Charing Cross. Its economy has dive ...

Marcus Forss Marcus Uolevi Forss (born 18 June 1999) is a Finnish professional footballer who plays as a forward for club Middlesbrough and the Finland national team. Forss is a graduate of the West Bromwich Albion academy and after transferring to Brentf ...

on five goals. Arsenal then headed to

Carrow Road Carrow Road is a association football, football stadium in Norwich, Norfolk, England, and is the home of EFL Championship club Norwich City F.C., Norwich City. The stadium is east of the city, near Norwich railway station and the River Wensum. ...

for a

Boxing Day Boxing Day, also called as Offering Day is a holiday celebrated after Christmas Day, occurring on the second day of Christmastide (26 December). Boxing Day was once a day to donate gifts to those in need, but it has evolved to become a part ...

match against

. Bukayo Saka scored the opening goal in the sixth minute after receiving a pass from Martin Ødegaard and shooting through the legs of Brandon Williams. Arsenal's second goal was also assisted by Ødegaard, as he found Kieran Tierney on the left flank, who ran into the box and fired a low shot across goal just before halftime. In the 67th minute, Saka scored again after receiving a pass from Alexandre Lacazette and beating Williams one-on-one before shooting from the edge of the box.

Ozan Kabak Ozan Muhammed Kabak (born 25 March 2000) is a Turkish professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Bundesliga club TSG Hoffenheim and the Turkey national team. Club career Galatasaray Ozan trained with the Galatasaray youth academy, ...

tripped Lacazette as the latter was receiving a pass from Emile Smith Rowe, prompting referee Graham Scott to award Arsenal a penalty in the 84th minute, which Lacazette then converted. In second half stoppage time, substitute Nicolas Pépé's pass across the box deflected off Kabak to Smith Rowe, who finished at the back post for his third goal in as many matches, all of which have come as a substitute. The 5–0 win meant that Arsenal ended the year on a four-match win streak. Arsenal's performances in December led to several Premier League monthly award nominations. Alexandre Lacazette's goal to finish off a 'flowing' team move against Southampton was nominated for Goal of the Month, while manager Mikel Arteta was nominated for Manager of the Month. Additionally, both Martin Ødegaard and Gabriel Martinelli were nominated for Player of the Month. Though the latter two awards were ultimately won by

and

Raheem Sterling Raheem Shaquille Sterling (born 8 December 1994) is a professional Association football, footballer who plays as a Winger (association football), winger for club Chelsea F.C., Chelsea. Sterling began his career at Queens Park Rangers F.C., Que ...

, respectively, Lacazette's goal was named the Goal of the Month.

January

In the first

fixture of 2022, Arsenal hosted

at the

on New Year's Day. Dutch assistant manager Albert Stuivenberg filled in for manager

, who had tested positive for COVID-19 on 29 December and was forced to miss the match. An Arsenal penalty call in the 10th minute after contact between

and Ederson was dismissed by VAR. However, Arsenal took the lead after the half-hour mark when

found

in the box, who slotted the ball in as

screened off

Nathan Aké Nathan Benjamin Aké (; born 18 February 1995) is a Dutch professional footballer who plays as a centre-back or left-back for club Manchester City and the Netherlands national team. Club career Chelsea Early life and career Nathan Benjamin ...

. Manchester City equalized when

converted a 57th-minute penalty, which had been awarded by referee

Stuart Attwell Stuart Steven Attwell (born 6 October 1982) is an English referee from Nuneaton, Warwickshire, who currently officiates in the Premier League. Attwell made a prominent debut in 2008 as the youngest person ever to referee in the Premier League. b ...

after he deemed

to have committed a foul on

Bernardo Silva Bernardo Mota Veiga de Carvalho e Silva (; born 10 August 1994) is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays as a midfielder or right winger for club Manchester City, whom he captains, and the Portugal national team. Silva came throug ...

. Immediately following the restart, Aké made a goal line clearance on Aymeric Laporte's header to prevent the own goal before

missed the follow-up just wide of the top corner. Less than a minute later, Attwell sent off

after the latter picked up a second yellow card for a foul on

; Attwell had shown him his first yellow card following the Mahrez penalty for dissent. With Manchester City having the man advantage, Rodri scored the winning goal in stoppage time after Laporte's initial shot had been blocked by Ben White, giving the visitors a 2–1 win. On 5 January, it was announced that the first leg of the

semi-finals against

, which was to be held the following day, was postponed to 13 January due to a

outbreak among Liverpool's players and staff, with the second leg to be played a week later. This also led a change in the home team order, with Liverpool now hosting the first leg and Arsenal hosting the second leg. Ahead of the

Africa Cup of Nations The Africa Cup of Nations, commonly abbreviated as AFCON and officially known as the TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations for sponsorship reasons, is the main biennial international men's association football competition in Africa. It is s ...

, five players were called up by their respective countries; these were Mohamed Elneny (

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

(

Gabon Gabon ( ; ), officially the Gabonese Republic (), is a country on the Atlantic coast of Central Africa, on the equator, bordered by Equatorial Guinea to the northwest, Cameroon to the north, the Republic of the Congo to the east and south, and ...

(

Ghana Ghana, officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It is situated along the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, and shares borders with Côte d’Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, and Togo to t ...

), and

(

Ivory Coast Ivory Coast, also known as Côte d'Ivoire and officially the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, is a country on the southern coast of West Africa. Its capital city of Yamoussoukro is located in the centre of the country, while its largest List of ci ...

), with academy player Omar Rekik also being called up for

Tunisia Tunisia, officially the Republic of Tunisia, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered by Algeria to the west and southwest, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Tunisia also shares m ...

. Ahead of the

third-round match against

club

Nottingham Forest Nottingham Forest Football Club is a professional association football club based in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English football. Founde ...

on 9 January, the club announced the release of a one-off, all-white fourth kit that would be worn during the match. The kit, which is not commercially available and will be "awarded to individuals who are making a positive difference in the community," is part of a campaign to raise awareness about knife crime and youth violence, which contributed to the highest number of teenage murders in a year in London since records began. On 8 January, Ainsley Maitland-Niles joined

club

Roma Roma or ROMA may refer to: People, characters, figures, names * Roma or Romani people, an ethnic group living mostly in Europe and the Americas. * Roma called Roy, ancient Egyptian High Priest of Amun * Roma (footballer, born 1979), born ''Paul ...

on loan until the end of the season. Arsenal's FA Cup campaign ended after just one match, as Nottingham Forest won 1–0 at the

City Ground The City Ground is a association football, football stadium in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England, on the banks of the River Trent. It has been home to Nottingham Forest F.C., Nottingham Forest since 1898 and has a capacity of 30,455. ...

due to an 83rd-minute goal from

Lewis Grabban Lewis James Grabban (born 12 January 1988) is an English former professional footballer who played as a striker. Since retiring from football Lewis has returned to Nottingham Forest as an academy coach. He was called up to the Jamaica squad in ...

, who finished a cross from Ryan Yates. Meanwhile, Arsenal struggled offensively all game and registered no shots on target despite dominating the time of possession. Additionally, in a rare first-half, non-injury substitution, manager Mikel Arteta sent on Kieran Tierney in place of a 'struggling'

in the 35th minute. This was the first time since the 2017–18 edition that Arsenal were knocked out in the third round, which also came at the hands of Nottingham Forest. Four days later, Arsenal travelled to

for the first leg of the EFL Cup semi-finals against Liverpool. An injury to

early in the match forced a substitution in the 11th minute, with

replacing him at right-back. Moments later, Arsenal nearly conceded the opening goal, as

Jordan Henderson Jordan Brian Henderson (born 17 June 1990) is an English professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Eredivisie club Ajax, which he captains, and the England national team. He is noted for his leadership, versatility, and physicali ...

charged down and blocked a long kick from Aaron Ramsdale, but the deflection went wide of the open goal and resulted in a Liverpool corner. In the 24th minute, Granit Xhaka was sent off by referee Michael Oliver for a high boot and a denial of a clear goal-scoring opportunity, as the former attempted to intercept a long pass from

Andrew Robertson Andrew Henry Robertson (born 11 March 1994) is a Scottish professional footballer who plays at left-back for club Liverpool and captains the Scotland national team. He is regarded as one of the best left-backs of his generation and one of th ...

. The red card meant that Xhaka would miss Arsenal's next two matches. It also prompted Arteta to make another early substitution, with centre-back Rob Holding replacing striker

to provide defensive cover. Despite playing with only 10 players for the rest of the match, Arsenal held Liverpool to a 0–0 draw, with

shooting over an open goal in the closing minutes and missing Liverpool's other best scoring chance. On 15 January, the Premier League accepted Arsenal's request to postpone the

match A match is a tool for starting a fire. Typically, matches are made of small wooden sticks or stiff paper. One end is coated with a material that can be ignited by friction generated by striking the match against a suitable surface. Wooden matc ...

against

, which would have been held the following day, due to an insufficient amount of available players in the Arsenal squad as a result of COVID-19, existing and recent injuries, and players away with their countries at the Africa Cup of Nations. On 18 January,

Sead Kolašinac Sead Kolašinac (; born 20 June 1993) is a professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Serie A club Atalanta. Born in Germany, he plays for the Bosnia and Herzegovina national team. Kolašinac started his professional career at Sch ...

left the club by mutual consent and signed with

club

Olympique de Marseille Olympique de Marseille (, ; , ), also known simply as Marseille, or by the abbreviation OM (, ), is a French professional Association football, football club based in Marseille which competes in Ligue 1, the French football league system, top f ...

, joining up with Arsenal loanees

and

. Two days later,

Pablo Marí Pablo Marí Villar (born 31 August 1993) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for club Fiorentina. Marí graduated from Mallorca's youth academy and played for various clubs throughout his career, in Spain, the Neth ...

was loaned out to Serie A club

Udinese Udinese Calcio (; "Udinese Football") is a professional football club based in Udine, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Italy. The team currently competes in the Serie A, the first tier of Italian football. It was founded on 30 November 1896 as a sport ...

until the end of the season. That same day, in the second leg of the EFL Cup semi-finals, Arsenal were knocked out of the competition at home 2–0 by Liverpool, thanks to a brace from Diogo Jota. Both sides came close to scoring early in the match, with Alexandre Lacazette's fifth-minute free kick hitting the crossbar and Joël Matip's tap-in disallowed for offside minutes later, before Jota scored the opener in the 17th minute. After Liverpool came close with

Ibrahima Konaté Ibrahima Konaté (born 25 May 1999) is a French professional Association football, footballer who plays as a centre-back for club Liverpool F.C., Liverpool and the France national football team, France national team. Starting off with FC Socha ...

's header from a

corner hitting the post early in the second half, they finally scored a second goal as Jota received a long pass from Alexander-Arnold and chipped the ball over an onrushing Aaron Ramsdale. To make matters worse for Arsenal, 74th-minute substitute Thomas Partey, who had just returned from international duty after Ghana's early elimination from the Africa Cup of Nations, received a second yellow card for a late tackle on Fabinho and was sent off in the closing minutes of the game, having received his first yellow card for a foul on

Neco Williams Neco Shay Williams (born 13 April 2001) is a Welsh professional association football, footballer who plays as a Full-back (association football), full-back for club Nottingham Forest F.C., Nottingham Forest and the Wales national football tea ...

minutes earlier. Arsenal returned to Premier League competition on 23 January at home against

. However, despite Arsenal having three times as much possession as Burnley and dominating shots and corners, neither team was able to break the deadlock and the match finished 0–0, which ended Arsenal's month-long spell in fourth place and dropped them to sixth. The club continued their exodus of players in the winter transfer window, as

joined fellow Premier League club

on a permanent transfer announced on 27 January. On the final day of that transfer window, Arsenal made their first and only first-team acquisition, signing 23-year-old American centre-back Auston Trusty from

Major League Soccer Major League Soccer (MLS) is a professional Association football, soccer league in North America and the highest level of the United States soccer league system. It comprises 30 teams, with 27 in the United States and 3 in Canada, and is sanc ...

club

Colorado Rapids The Colorado Rapids are an American professional Association football, soccer club based in the Denver metropolitan area. The Rapids compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conference. Founded in ...

, although Trusty will stay with the Rapids on loan until 17 July 2022. The following day, it was announced that former captain Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, who had not been selected for any match squads since the loss to Everton in early December, had left the club by mutual consent, with it being announced later that he had joined

club

Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...

February

After the international break, Arsenal travelled to Molineux to face

on 10 February. In the 25th minute, after a half-clearance from a Gabriel Martinelli corner, both Alexandre Lacazette and

José Sá José Pedro Malheiro de Sá (; born 17 January 1993) is a Portuguese professional Association football, footballer who plays as a Goalkeeper (association football), goalkeeper for club Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C., Wolverhampton Wanderers and ...

went for the ball and missed, with Gabriel scoring the tap-in for the game's only goal. In the 69th minute, referee Michael Oliver showed Martinelli two yellow cards in quick succession, amounting to a red card and dismissal; the first was for shoving

Daniel Podence Daniel Castelo Podence (born 21 October 1995) is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays as a winger for Saudi Pro League club Al-Shabab. He started his career with Sporting CP, appearing in 40 competitive matches and also being loaned ...

and preventing a quick throw-in, and the second was for chasing him down and fouling him again. Despite being reduced to 10 players, Arsenal maintained their lead and won 1–0. On 19 February, Arsenal hosted Brentford, to whom they had lost the season opener. Neither club scored in the first half, but three minutes into the second half, Emile Smith Rowe broke the deadlock with his low curling shot past

David Raya David Raya Martín (born 15 September 1995) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for club Arsenal and the Spain national team. Regarded as one of the best goalkeepers in the world, he is known for his distribution, b ...

. In the 79th minute, Arsenal were on the break, and Bukayo Saka finished off a pass from Thomas Partey with a curling strike that ricocheted in off the far post. However, Brentford scoring a consolation goal in stoppage time, with a scramble in the box following a

Saman Ghoddos Seyed Saman Ghoddoos (; born 6 September 1993) is an Iranian peoples, Iranian Swedish born professional Association football, footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder or Striker (association football), striker for the Iran national footba ...

free kick resulting in Christian Norgaard's close-range strike, which was confirmed after a VAR check for offside. There was not enough time for Brentford to seek an equalising goal, so Arsenal won 2–1. Arsenal continued to make up their games in hand and played the reverse fixture against Wolverhampton Wanderers at home on 25 February; the match had originally been scheduled for 28 December 2021 but was postponed due to a lack of available players in the Wolves squad as a result of numerous injuries and positive

test results. Wolves scored first, with Hwang Hee-chan intercepting a back pass from Gabriel to Aaron Ramsdale and scoring in the 10th minute. They maintained their lead for most of the match, until Arsenal equalised in the 82nd minute. Substitute Eddie Nketiah received Martin Ødegaard's lofted pass and cut it back for fellow substitute Nicolas Pépé, who spun around and scored with his stronger left foot. Five minutes into stoppage time, Alexandre Lacazette received a pass from Pépé and shot towards goal, with the strike being diverted into the top corner off José Sá's glove, giving Arsenal another 2–1 win.

March

Arsenal went to

Vicarage Road Vicarage Road is a stadium in Watford, England, and is the home stadium of EFL Championship, Championship club Watford F.C., Watford. An all-seater stadium, its current capacity is 22,200. History It has been the home of Watford since 1922, w ...

on 6 March to face

. Less than 20 seconds into the match, Emmanuel Dennis scored but the goal was ruled offside. In the fifth minute, Martin Ødegaard slotted the ball past Ben Foster after receiving a pass from Bukayo Saka. Watford levelled the score six minutes later with a bicycle kick from Cucho Hernández. At the half-hour mark, Alexandre Lacazette returned a pass to Saka, who struck into the top corner. In the 52nd minute, Lacazette provided another assist, setting the ball for Gabriel Martinelli's strike. A late goal from

reduced Watford's deficit, but Arsenal held on for a 3–2 victory and moved back into the top four. On 14 March, Arsenal faced Leicester City at home. The Gunners opened the scoring just after the tenth minute. A corner by Gabriel Martinelli was met by the head of Thomas Partey at the near-post. Partey could have had a brace just seven minutes later, when a deflected shot by Granit Xhaka dropped to the Ghanaian, who saw his shot from the edge of the box rattle off the Leicester upright. Leicester nearly found an equaliser in the 34th minute, when a cross by Marc Albrighton was headed towards goal by Barnes. The header from just outside the six-yard box was met by a strong right palm from goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale. In the 54th minute, Arsenal had a penalty shout when Thomas Partey's header was glanced by the hand of defender

Çağlar Söyüncü Çağlar Söyüncü (; born 23 May 1996) is a Turkish professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Süper Lig club Fenerbahçe and the Turkey national team. Söyüncü's first senior professional team was the Turkish second division ...

. After a lengthy VAR check, referee Anthony Taylor awarded the Gunners a penalty. The resulting spot-kick was converted by Alexandre Lacazette. Thereby doubling Arsenal's lead in the 59th minute and also marking Alexandre Lacazette's 200th senior career goal. The result brought Arsenal back into fourth, leapfrogging Manchester United. Arsenal welcomed Liverpool to the Emirates Stadium on 17 March. The Gunner's fought valiantly in the first half, limiting Liverpool's dominant attacking players to speculative half-chances. However, failing to capitalize on their own chances. The momentum swung Liverpool's way in the second-half, with

netting a goal which was immediately chalked off for offside within two minutes of the half. Arsenal could have broken the deadlock themselves, when Martin Ødegaard's shot was saved by goalkeeper Alisson following a misplaced back-pass by Thiago. The opener was finally scored by

in the 54th minute, with his shot beating Aaron Ramsdale at the near-post following a through-ball by Thiago. Liverpool would go on to double their lead eight minutes later, when

Roberto Firmino Roberto Firmino Barbosa de Oliveira (born 2 October 1991) is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays as a forward or attacking midfielder for Saudi Pro League club Al-Ahli, which he captains. After starting his career with Figueiren ...

tapped-in from close range via a cross by

April

Arsenal kicked off the month of April with an away trip to

Selhurst Park Selhurst Park is a football stadium in Selhurst, in the London Borough of Croydon, England, which is the home ground of Premier League club Crystal Palace. The stadium was designed by Archibald Leitch and opened in 1924. It has hosted interna ...

to face

on 4 April. Goals from

Jean-Philippe Mateta Jean-Philippe Mateta (; born 28 June 1997) is a French professional footballer who plays as a striker for club Crystal Palace. Mateta began his career with Châteauroux before signing for Ligue 1 side Lyon in 2016. Following a successful loan ...

and

before half-time followed by a

Wilfried Zaha Dazet Wilfried Armel Zaha (born 10 November 1992) is a professional Association football, footballer who plays as a Forward (association football)#Winger, winger for Major League Soccer club Charlotte FC, Charlotte, on loan from Süper Lig club ...

penalty condemned Arsenal to a 3–0 defeat. Next, Arsenal hosted Brighton on 9 April. Brighton ended up with a two-goal lead thanks to goals from Leandro Trossard and

Enock Mwepu Enock Mwepu (born 1 January 1998) is a Zambian former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. Having begun his career in his native Zambia, Mwepu signed for Austrian club Red Bull Salzburg in 2017 before moving Brighton & Hove Alb ...

. An 89th-minute goal from Martin Ødergaard came too late, as Arsenal ended up losing 1–2 to the visitors. Arsenal's losing streak increased to three consecutive matches after losing 1–0 to

St Mary's Stadium St Mary's Stadium is a seated but also safe-standing football stadium in Southampton, Hampshire, England, which has been the home stadium of club Southampton since 2001. The stadium has a capacity of 32,384 and is currently the largest footbal ...

on 16 April, with the contest's sole goal coming from Jan Bednarek in the 44th minute. Arsenal finally ended their losing streak on 20 April with a 4–2 away win at

Stamford Bridge Stamford Bridge may refer to: * Stamford Bridge, East Riding of Yorkshire, a village in England ** Battle of Stamford Bridge, 25 September 1066 * Stamford Bridge (bridge), a bridge in the village of Stamford Bridge * Stamford Bridge (stadium), in ...

against Chelsea; Arsenal's goals came via a brace from Eddie Nketiah, and one each from Emile Smith Rowe and Bukayo Saka. Arsenal finished off the month by facing

at home on 23 April. An early goal from Tavares and a 31st-minute penalty conversion by Saka gave Arsenal a quick two goal lead, before

put United back in the game in the 34th minute. Granit Xhaka scored in the 70th minute to seal a 3–1 win for Arsenal to end April with back-to-back victories.

May

Arsenal started the final month of the season traveling to the

London Stadium London Stadium (formerly and also known as the Olympic Stadium and the Stadium at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park) is a multi-purpose outdoor stadium at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in the Stratford, London, Stratford district of London. It is loc ...

to face

on 1 May. Rob Holding and Gabriel scored for Arsenal either side of a West Ham equaliser from

Jarrod Bowen Jarrod Bowen (born 20 December 1996) is an English professional Association football, footballer who plays as a right winger or Forward (association football), forward for and captains club West Ham United F.C., West Ham United. He has also app ...

to secure a 2–1 victory for the Gunners, which extended their win streak to three. Next, Arsenal hosted

on 8 May. Eddie Nketiah scored a brace within 10 minutes, and despite a 66th-minute goal from

Diego Llorente Diego Javier Llorente Ríos (; born 16 August 1993) is a Spanish professional Association football, footballer who plays as a Defender (association football)#Centre-back, centre-back for club Real Betis. Having been developed at Real Madrid CF ...

, Arsenal held on for a 2–1 win, extending their win streak to four matches. Arsenal then faced Spurs at the

Tottenham Hotspur Stadium Tottenham Hotspur Stadium is the home of Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur F.C., Tottenham Hotspur in North London, replacing the club's previous ground, White Hart Lane. With a seating capacity of 62,850, it is the List of football stadium ...

on 12 May. Arsenal's winning streak was snapped, as a brace from

and a goal from

gave Tottenham a 3–0 win. Hoping to bounce back, Arsenal visited

St James' Park St James' Park is a Association football, football stadium in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. It is the home of Newcastle United F.C., Newcastle United. With a seating capacity of 52,305, it is the List of football stadiums in England, 8th la ...

on 16 May to face

. Both of the match's goals would come in the second half, as a 56th-minute opener from

Callum Wilson Callum Eddie Graham Wilson (born 27 February 1992) is an English professional Association football, footballer who plays as a Striker (association football), striker for Premier League club Newcastle United F.C., Newcastle United and the Englan ...

followed by an 85th-minute strike by Bruno Guimarães gave Newcastle a 2–0 victory and saw Arsenal fall below Tottenham in the table on the penultimate matchday. Arsenal's final match of the season was at home against Everton. Going into the match, Arsenal not only had to win, but Spurs also had to lose for Arsenal to qualify for next season's Champions League. Arsenal beat Everton in a 5–1 rout, but due to Spurs also winning their match, the Gunners qualified for the

Europa League The UEFA Europa League (UEL), usually known simply as the Europa League, is an annual association football, football club competition organised since 1971 by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European footb ...

instead, finishing the season in fifth place with 69 points.

Club

Kits

Supplier:

Adidas Adidas AG (; stylized in all lowercase since 1949) is a German athletic apparel and footwear corporation headquartered in Herzogenaurach, Bavaria, Germany. It is the largest sportswear manufacturer in Europe, and the second largest in the ...

/ Sponsor:

Fly Emirates Emirates is one of the two flag carriers of the United Arab Emirates (the other being Etihad Airways). Based in Garhoud, Dubai, the airline is a subsidiary of The Emirates Group, which is owned by the government of Dubai's Investment Corpora ...

/ Sleeve sponsor: Visit Rwanda

First-team coaching staff

First-team squad

Transfers

Transfers in

Transfers out

Loans out

Friendlies

On 16 April 2021, Arsenal announced that they would participate in a pre-season fixture against defending

Scottish Professional Football League The Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL) is the national men's association football league in Scotland. The league was formed in June 2013 following a merger between the Scottish Premier League and the Scottish Football League. As well ...

champions

on 17 July at the

Ibrox Stadium Ibrox Stadium is a football stadium on the south side of the River Clyde in the Ibrox area of Glasgow, Scotland. The home of Scottish Premiership team Rangers, Ibrox is the third-largest football stadium in Scotland, with an all-seated ca ...

, in order to celebrate Rangers' 150th anniversary. This forms part of a training camp in Scotland, with another friendly being played against Hibernian four days earlier.

Florida Cup

Arsenal confirmed they will travel to the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

to compete in the seventh edition of the Florida Cup in

Orlando, Florida Orlando ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Orange County, Florida, United States. The city proper had a population of 307,573 at the 2020 census, making it the fourth-most populous city in Florida behind Jacksonville, Florida, Jacksonville ...

. On July 20, Arsenal withdrew from the Cup, citing "a small number of positive

COVID Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

tests."

Mind Series

A series with Chelsea and

was confirmed for the start of August 2021, to be called 'The Mind Series'.

Competitions

Overview

Premier League

League table

Results summary

Results by round

Matches

The league fixtures were announced on 16 June 2021.

FA Cup

EFL Cup

Statistics

Appearances and goals

''Players with no appearances not included in the list.''

Goalscorers

Disciplinary record

Clean sheets

Awards

Each club Player of the Month and Goal of the Month award winner was chosen via open-access polls on the club's official website. While the Player of the Month awards only include the men's senior team, the Goal of the Month awards include contenders from both the men's and women's teams.

Arsenal Player of the Month award

Arsenal Goal of the Month award

External awards

Seasonal awards

References

Sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:2021-22 Arsenal F.C. season Arsenal F.C. seasons

Arsenal An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...

Overview

June and July

August

September

October

November

December

January

February

March

April

May

Club

Kits

First-team coaching staff

First-team squad

Transfers

Transfers in

Transfers out

Loans out

Friendlies

Florida Cup

Mind Series

Competitions

Overview

Premier League

League table

Results summary

Results by round

Matches

FA Cup

EFL Cup

Statistics

Appearances and goals

Goalscorers

Disciplinary record

Clean sheets

Awards

Arsenal Player of the Month award

Arsenal Goal of the Month award

External awards

Seasonal awards

See also

References

Sources