Arsenal have been warned that their supposed £40 million ($50m) summer transfer budget “isn’t enough”, with Robert Pires claiming that “a lot of money” needs to be spent by the Gunners.
Those at Emirates Stadium are preparing for a third successive season without Champions League football.
Unai Emery could only deliver a fifth-place finish in the Premier League during his debut campaign, while the Spaniard also suffered Europa League final heartache against Chelsea.
The hope was that more disappointment in north London would lead to a loosening of the purse strings, but that appears unlikely to be the case.
Arsenal will once again be favouring a frugal approach to recruitment, much to the frustration of a loyal fan base and former stars with the club’s best interests at heart.
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Ex-Gunners forward Pires told reporters of the mindset being adopted: “I read that Arsenal have a small envelope for transfers, only £40m. My opinion is that it isn’t enough.
“If you want to build a good team, you need to spend a lot of money, especially in the Premier League.
“I respect Arsenal’s position and the owner, but everybody knows that if you want to win the Premier League, you need to spend a lot of money.
“All the top clubs want to sign great players, but if you want a great player it costs a lot of money.”
If Arsenal are to once again keep themselves out of the market for big-money deals, then Pires believes they should be piecing together long-term plans.
The Frenchman feels moves for emerging talents with the potential to be shrewd additions for the present and future could be the way forward.
He added: “After getting his first season out of the way after replacing Arsene Wenger it’s a new era for Arsenal and for Unai.
“Unfortunately we lost Aaron Ramsey and Danny Welbeck. Maybe we need to rebuild, make a new team, and why not with the young players?
“I hope some young players come through into the first team. Freddie Ljungberg did very well with the Under-23s and won the league.
“We have good young players and the right man heading the academy in Per Mertesacker.
“So maybe the solution, if Arsenal have only £40m, is to bring in some young players and prepare for the future.”
One player of considerable promise currently being heavily linked with a switch to Arsenal is St Etienne defender William Saliba, with the Gunners said to have reached an agreement with the 18-year-old.
