The 2022–23 season was Arsenal Football Club's 31st season in the Premier League, their 97th consecutive season in the top flight of English football and 106th season in the top flight overall. In addition to the domestic league, Arsenal also participated in this season's editions of the FA Cup, EFL Cup and UEFA Europa League, the latter of which was their 37th European campaign.
Managed by Mikel Arteta in his third full season, Arsenal were the second-youngest team in the Premier League with an average starting age of 25 years and 52 days. Following eliminations from the FA Cup, EFL Cup and UEFA Europa League, they finished second in the Premier League and qualified for next season's UEFA Champions League after a six-year absence.
The season covers the period from 1 July 2022 to 30 June 2023. Notably, the fixture dates of domestic and European competitions were altered to accommodate the FIFA World Cup played in November and December 2022 in Qatar.
Review
Background
On 20 December 2019, Arsenal appointed former club captain Mikel Arteta – who was 37 years old then and had never managed before – as the new head coach on a three-and-a-half-year deal. The 2019–20 season had been defined by a three-month lull between March and June, caused by the COVID-19 pandemic; and when it returned, it was behind closed doors. The Gunners finished the league season in eighth place – far from a European qualification spot; but they earned a record-extending 14th FA Cup win on 1 August 2020, helping them qualify for next season's Europa League, and making Arteta the first person to win the FA Cup as both captain and coach of the club.
The 2020–21 season was heavily affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, as lots of domestic and European games were played behind closed doors. After Arsenal triumphed in the 2020 FA Community Shield, Arteta's title was changed to manager. On 26 December 2020, the Gunners recorded an important victory at home against Chelsea to end their seven-game run without a win in the Premier League and relieve the pressure on Arteta. On 18 April 2021, Arsenal were announced as a founding club of the breakaway European competition The Super League; they withdrew from the competition two days later amid near-universal condemnation. The Gunners finished the season in eighth place once again, this time not qualifying for a European competition for the first time in 25 years.
The 2021–22 season, which was documented in the Amazon Prime Video series All or Nothing: Arsenal, was a rollercoaster season for the Gunners. With their three consecutive defeats without scoring a goal to open the Premier League campaign, the club dropped to 20th, sitting at the bottom of the table, which was their worst start to a season for 67 years. Since then, a new look Arsenal started to emerge, with several academy graduates and new signings making a major impact. In fact, the Gunners were the youngest team in the 2021–22 Premier League with an average starting age of 24 years and 308 days – more than a whole year younger than the next team. Arteta's Arsenal rebuild on and off the pitch began to take shape in this season, with the Gunners moving into the top four for several times between December 2021 and May 2022. On 6 May 2022, the club announced that the Spaniard had signed a new contract to the end of the 2024–25 campaign. Arsenal finished the league season in fifth place, narrowly missing out on Champions League football.
Pre-season
It was reported on 29 June 2022 that the first-team players who were not in action for their respective countries since the end of the last campaign were back to the London Colney training ground for pre-season training.
On 4 July, the Gunners travelled to Germany for a mini training camp at Adidas headquarters in Herzogenaurach. Five academy players – Salah-Eddine Oulad M'Hand, Charlie Patino, Matt Smith, Lino Sousa and Reuell Walters – were with the first-team squad.
Four days later, Arsenal faced 2. Bundesliga side 1. FC Nürnberg at Max-Morlock-Stadion in Nuremberg. New signings Gabriel Jesus, Marquinhos and Matt Turner made their non-competitive debuts for the club in a 5–3 win. They returned to England on the next day.
On 11 July, Arsenal confirmed that the internationals who were in action for their respective countries in June were all back to London Colney. Two days later, manager Arteta named a 33-man squad for the trip to the United States where they would play three more friendlies. The 17-year-old defender Reuell Walters was the only academy player to travel with the first team to the US.