Worse than Madueke: Arsenal must finally sell the modern-day Kallstrom

When Declan Rice turned to Martin Odegaard fresh from Manchester City defeat and defiantly claimed “it’s not over”, it was as if the Arsenal star was also trying to convince himself.

The problem for the Gunners is that champions do not need convincing. Champions do not react to Erling Haaland’s winning goal by squaring up against the Norwegian so soon after.

Champions are not overly emotional. They are clinical and they get the job done like Man City are now on course to do for the first time all season.

With five games left to play, Mikel Arteta will be starting to wonder where it’s all gone wrong and when the post-mortem commences, he could look towards the recruitment.

Berta’s transfer mistakes are beginning to cost Arsenal

Arsenal finally splashed the cash last summer, much to the delight of those in North London. Berta arrived from Atletico Madrid and was clearly out to make a statement as the club’s new sporting director – spending big on the likes of Viktor Gyokeres and Noni Madueke.

The new sporting director welcomed eight players in total, spending over £300m in the process, and what followed was a period of over 100 days at the top of the Premier League. It looked as though it was job done for Berta.

However, when push has come to shove up against Man City, the Gunners simply haven’t had the firepower or depth to keep hold of their top spot.

Almost 12 months after those arrivals and that money spent, Arsenal are on course to be exactly where they were last season and the season before that – second place.

There will be an inquest into that recruitment, starting with fringe players and all the way to those expected to transform Arsenal like Viktor Gyokeres. The Swede has scored 18 goals in competitions, but none of those have come against the current top six.

Christian Norgaard, meanwhile, was supposed to offer Arteta crucial depth at a stage when Martin Zubimendi desperately needs a rest.

Instead, he’s become Arsenal’s new Kim Kallstrom.

Struggling Norgaard is Arsenal’s new Kallstrom

Kallstrom’s name signals the opposite of nostalgia at the Emirates. Instead, it’s a stark reminder of how poor Arsenal’s recruitment has been in the past.

The Swedish midfielder made just three Premier League appearances in the five months that he spent in North London and one other appearance in the FA Cup.

For a player who was meant to provide cover for Jack Wilshere and Mathieu Flamini at the time, those numbers expose just how little Arsene Wenger rated Kallstrom, despite telling reporters: “He has proven quality at both club and international level. We welcome Kim to Arsenal.”

That was 12 years ago. By now, it would be easy to assume that Arsenal have learned their lesson. But that couldn’t be further from the truth.

Just like when Wenger welcomed Kallstrom for further depth in 2014, Arteta welcomed Norgaard last summer. The midfielder has played just six Premier League games since, despite similar praise from his manager that Kallstrom once received.

The reality is that actions speak louder than words and it’s clear that Arteta does not trust Norgaard. Even with Zubimendi struggling, he has not even turned towards the Dane from the bench in the last two league games.

There are still some positives for Berta to take from his first summer transfer window, but there’s also some making up to do after some disappointing arrivals – starting with the sale of Norgaard.

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