The beginning of 2025 has been tumultuous for Arsenal with an impressive win to kick off the year before disappointing results at Brighton and at home to Newcastle to bring us back down to reality, hard. The feeling of misfortune remains strong, especially following the contentious penalty call at the Amex Stadium and the glut of chances wasted against the Magpies.

Yet it is the lack of clinical finishing that remains high up in concerns for a number of people, and that leads us into the state of the transfer window. Arsenal have money to spend, to a degree, following the end of the summer window when both Aaron Ramsdale and Eddie Nketiah were sold.

This added to what was made from the sale of Emile Smith Rowe and, if you look at how all three have performed since leaving the club, to have brought in around £90million, including add-ons looks like excellent business. Yet that has not bought with it much credence in regard to the lack of offensive signings in particular.

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Unfortunately, the sense is currently that this is unlikely to change this month barring a surprise, football.london understands. Arsenal are always very clear when it comes to the standards they hold when making decisions on major investments.

When asked by football.london whether the reactive nature of the January window loosens that threshold to make a commitment to sign a player, Arteta was very clear on how that is viewed. In terms of quality, the club will not compromise.

"Hopefully not," he replied. "We set very high standards, and we really only want to have players if they come through the academy or we have to sign those players to really elevate and impact the team, otherwise bringing bodies it doesn’t help us."

Some might argue that Raheem Sterling's loan or the money invested in Kai Havertz doesn't necessarily support that. But is that too harsh?

Sterling is indeed on loan and the deal which saw him arrive was almost too good to be true when presented by Chelsea as an option. His experience alone is of great benefit to a young group of forward players.

Havertz, meanwhile, for all the stick is three goals behind Alexander Isak's goal tally this season in all competitions, having played a few games more. Considering the Swede to many is the best in the world based on current form and supposedly deserving of a £150million price tag or so, that gap doesn't look as wide as the feeling is.

He missed a horrible chance against Isak's club on Tuesday night. His first game back after missing the last two with illness, but frankly, the discourse around Havertz remains hyperbolised. In essence, the club's top scorer is a very good player.

But that does not mean reinforcements are not needed, to me, they are. Leandro Trossard, now thirty, enters the final year of his deal, Bukayo Saka is out for the foreseeable future and Gabriel Martinelli and Gabriel Jesus have suffered from inconsistent form for a considerable length of time.

Arsenal have an opportunity this season with no guarantee that it will come around again, especially with Manchester City looking like they too might strengthen this very winter. Omar Marmoush is of keen interest to Pep Guardiola to add to their own attacking options.

After the loss of Julian Alvarez, there is a gap behind Erling Haaland to fill. Marmoush can also play, to an extent, in wide areas, and the potential uncertain futures for Jack Grealish and Bernardo Silva mean the move makes sense.

Nico Williams is a name that is thrown around, and while it is true that those at Arsenal appreciate him, there are hesitancies. Due to the nature of Athletic Club, he commands very high wages in Bilbao, and a move to the English capital would require an increase to convince him to make the switch from Spain. This could potentially see him break the wage structure and become the highest-paid player at the club despite not even necessarily being a guaranteed starter.

Furthermore, midway through the season with his hometown club fourth and in a Europa League competition, the final of which is in Bilbao… leaving now would do him no favours with the supporters of a club he holds very dearly. The release clause is in excess of £50million and must be paid upfront, which Athletic Club would certainly demand.

Then you start to look at other options, especially for the position vacated by Bukayo Saka at present. What player is good enough to be an adequate replacement for the England international but who is also willing to effectively be a player benched for the foreseeable future when he returns?

Is that player out there? Bryan Mbeumo has been mentioned and although reports have claimed that he is a target, football.london understands he is not currently under consideration this winter.

The absence of Edu, who resigned from the sporting director role some months ago, is sure to have had some impact; but there remains a strong group of talent behind the scenes working with Arteta, such as Jason Ayto, who will be ready should an opportunity emerge.

The process to replace Edu remains underway and Tomas Rosicky's name has come up. But sources have told football.london that a decision is still some way away, with many candidates still under consideration.

Arteta has maintained that the club are ready to act should indeed something emerge. However, it appears the hope of an aggressive approach to this winter market is not the strategy with Arsenal instead vigilant but cautious this January. That will leave many with questions remaining over what the rest of the season might hold if the squad does not improve.