FRIENDLY IRE

Gunners off the pace despite splashing out in transfer market

- BY RYAN TAYLOR

ONLY Premier League or Champions League glory will be a sufficient return for Arsenal this season.

But when 15-year-old Max Dowman (below left) is the highlight of your preseason programme — it should sound alarm bells for Mikel Arteta.

The England Under-17s sensation is not even eligible to feature for the Gunners in Europe until 2026.

It is hard to draw definitive conclusions from friendlies but defeat - while shipping three sloppy goals - in your penultimate warm-up fixture is hardly ideal preparation for a trip to Old Trafford to face Manchester United.

There is little margin for error this term - both Liverpool and Manchester City have strengthened and Arsenal cannot afford to suffer a slow start.

In the opening six Premier League fixtures, they travel to United, Liverpool and Newcastle while also hosting Leeds, Nottingham Forest and Manchester City.

Opta suggest that, statistically, only Ruben Amorim’ side face a tougher run of games. However, there will be little scope for sympathy given the Gunners have splashed £187million this summer.

They have recruited in all areas of the pitch and have finally landed a marquee striker in Viktor Gyokeres.