The North Londoners have gone from languishing down in eighth and breaking their transfer record on players like Nicolas Pepe to fighting for the title and bringing in stars like Leandro Trossard, Declan Rice and Martin Odegaard.
Mikel Arteta and Edu Gaspar have been instrumental in this overhaul, and as such, their signings in recent windows haven't been met with too much scrutiny, but that cannot be said for their business a few years ago.
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In fact, back in 2021, one of the club's newest players was torn into by Jamie Carragher and Gary Neville following his debut, and to say he has since proven them wrong would be an understatement.
Ben White's debut
Yes, the player in question is right-back extraordinaire Ben White.
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The 26-year-old played as a centre-back in his first season at Arsenal following his £50m move from Brighton & Hove Albion and made his debut in the club's opening game of the 21/22 season away at the then newly promoted Brentford.
Unfortunately for the Englishman, he struggled during the match and was one of the more disappointing players in what was an embarrassing 2-0 defeat for the visitors.
Following the game, Sky Sports' Carragher and Neville then analysed the performance, going particularly hard on the new signing, focusing on his height, lack of experience, and naivety at the back.
Now, while the pair were indeed right to label it as a disappointing debut from the Pool-born ace, the suggestion that he would continue to struggle for the North Londoners has since been proven very wrong.
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Moreover, while fans might point to his positional switch as vindication of the criticism, that was mainly down to the arrival of William Saliba, as in March 2022, he played 90 minutes for England as a centre-back, and losing your place in the lineup to the sensational Frenchman is nothing to be ashamed of anyway.
White's Arsenal career since
So, while Sky's punditry tag team was certainly right to flag some issues with White's debut back in 2021, it would be fair to say that in the three years since, he has wholly quashed any concerns people might have had about his ability to play for a top team.
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In fact, the Gunners' defensive "warrior", as dubbed by talent scout Jacek Kulig, hasn't just become an important player for the club; he's become practically undroppable.
According to the Standard, his form has forced Jurrien Timber to play more on the left this season, when the initial plan last summer was that he would offer the Englishman more competition on the right.
White's Arsenal career
Appearances
138
Goals
6
Assists
10
Goal Involvements per Match
0.11
All Stats via Transfermarkt
In all, the fan favourite, who isn't so
well-liked by other fanbases for his on-field antics, has now played 138 games for the North Londoners, starting 39 at centre-back and 94 at right-back, with the other five being substitute appearances.
He has also become more of an attacking threat alongside Bukayo Saka and Odegaard down the right flank and has ten assists and six goals to his name, including the club's 10000th in all competitions.
Ultimately, while his start to life as an Arsenal player was shakey, White has since more than justified his original price tag and new £150k-per-week deal while establishing himself as one of the best defenders in the country.
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