Arsenal news: Mikel Arteta's frustration with star as big-money signing reveals transfer plan

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Mikel Arteta may be pleased with recent results at Arsenal , but that hasn't stopped him from becoming frustrated with one summer signing. The Gunners have been on a great run of form as of late, recently toppling Chelsea for the third time under Liam Rosenior this season to go five points clear at the top of the Premier League .

Arsenal are still involved in four competitions this season, including the Champions League , FA Cup and the upcoming Carabao Cup final against title rivals Manchester City . Boss Arteta will hope his squad has what it takes to push for multiple trophies this year.

Regarding their FA Cup campaign and other silverware dreams, he said: "We want that one for sure (the FA Cup) and all the big ones. And that’s what we are chasing and that’s the purpose of this team.

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"At the end, we get judged for what we do today. Last week is not important. We will get judged for what we are able to do at the end of the season.

“One thing is the trophies for our football clubs and many other things that you have to do in a football club, especially in the situation we are in. I don’t expect that. I’m really happy where I am with the people that I work with and hopefully at least they know that we will give our very best to try to win as much as possible."

Here, Mirror Football has a look at the latest coming out of the Emirates Stadium.

Eberechi Eze has been the latest to fall to Arteta's frustration following his lacklustre performance against Chelsea. The returning former academy star signed for Arsenal last summer from Crystal Palace and has made 13 goal contributions so far.

This has included five goals against north London rivals Tottenham , endearing him to fans as the derby hero. However, with just 17 accurate passes out of 22 and two shots on Sunday, Arteta's annoyance could be seen from the dugout at the Emirates Stadium.

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The Spaniard could be seen growing increasingly agitated on the touchline and looked visibly frustrated with the England international's poor touches on numerous occasions. Former Manchester United hero Wayne Rooney previously criticised the Arsenal struggler and claimed he should be making it "impossible" for Arteta to drop him.

Speaking on the Wayne Rooney show, the ex-United man said: "I don’t think he’s been good enough this season. The two Tottenham games have shined a big light on him but in other games I’ve watched him and not thought he’s been good enough.

"I think a lot of that is probably through not playing consistently, I get that, but when you talk about mentality and character, if I was him I would be trying to make it very difficult for the manager to leave me out, both with your performances and in training. Clearly he’s not doing enough to warrant a place in the team consistently.

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"I get that Martin Odegaard is the captain but you’ve got to make it almost impossible for Mikel Arteta to leave you out. After the first Tottenham game I don’t think he did enough to stay in the team so you just hope now for him he plays better consistently to stay in the game. I think he needs to perform a little bit better than he has so far this season."

Riccardo Calafiori has admitted he dreams of returning to Roma in the future as his impact at Arsenal continues to dwindle. The 23-year-old has lost his place in the starting XI following an injury in December.

Since returning, the Italian has only started one Premier League match after being replaced by loan star Piero Hincapie during his injury absence. Calafiori joined Arsenal in July 2024 for a fee worth up to £42million and has made 54 appearances so far, with nine goal contributions.

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Hincapie has impressed in the Italy international's absence, with Arteta hinting that he wants to sign him permanently for £45m. These comments from the Arsenal boss have coincidentally coincided with Calafiori's revelation that he'd love to return to Roma.

He spent 12 years at the Italian outfit before heading to Basel and returning to Serie A with Bologna, where Arteta swiped him from in 2024. As per Corriere dello Sport , Calafiori said: "I'd like to return to Roma sooner or later. We can't plan it, of course, but yes, I want to return."

The young defender senses that he left the club with something to prove, adding: "I left something unfinished. It all started very well, with a goal. I played a lot for the first six months with Mourinho, even providing a few assists. Then came Bodo Glimt-Roma and from that moment on, I didn't play again.

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"I went to Genoa on loan, but I didn't play there either - only three appearances. In the meantime, Roma won the Conference [League]. There was no more room for me."

While this transfer hint may worry fans, Calafiori is clearly happy in north London and recently told Sky Sports how much he loves working with Arteta. The 23-year-old said: "Obviously, he's a really demanding guy, but I like it.

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