PSG did not beat us because they had the better players, the better tactics, or were coached better. They beat us because during the course of the season, their key players played less minutes.

Whilst Arsenal had a real slog of a season in the Premier League, a competition were you simply cannot rest too many players, PSG strolled to the Ligue 1 title whilst being able to rest key players consistently keeping them fresh for the Champions League.

Talisman Khvicha Kvaratskhelia played more than 740 league minutes less than Bukayo Saka, whilst centre back Marquinhos played 1702 and 1566 minutes less than Gabriel and Saliba respectively. That is the equivalent of about 17/18 games less.

Seven of Arsenal’s starting XI in the semi final had played more than 2,000 Premier League- with Declan Rice and David Raya playing in over 3,000. Just 2 of PSG’s semi-final players had clocked up 2,000+ minutes in Ligue 1.

Throughout Mikel Arteta’s managerial career, he has always been able to recognise “what next” when building the team from finishing 8th, through to aiming for top 4, then title challengers, and then winners. He has continued to take Arsenal on a evolutionary journey rectifying any weaknesses from the previous season. And our biggest weakness last season was how many minutes key players had to play in comparison to PSG.

Last summer we did brilliant raising the floor of the squad. The likes of Piero Hincapie, Cristhian Mosquera, Noni Madueke and Eberechi Eze gave Arteta more options. But it was still not enough.

There are still pockets of the squad were players saw a lot of minutes. And crucially the biggest are was in the middle of the park, the engine room.

By the time the final whistle went in Budapest, Rice had clocked up 4,456 minutes for Arsenal, with Martin Zubimendi playing 4,299. Zubimendi was criticised towards the end of the season, which was unfair considering the exhaustion he must have been feeling in his toughest ever season.

Arteta can be criticised for not bringing in Myles Lewis Skelly enough, or playing Premier League stalwart Christian Norgard in a couple of games. But I am reluctant to criticise a man whose team selection lead us to our first league title in 22-years. He basically sacrificed the Champions League to ensure our tired, weary, injured troops dragged us to the league title.

This summers transfer window, I feel, will not be about buying starters. It will be about buying players who can better share the load – especially in those opening months of a season.

The likes of Bruno Guimaraes could come in for Declan Rice with the aim of sharing the 4,456 minutes. His acquisition could see Rice end up playing under 2,500 minutes next season, with Guimaraes playing around 2,000. That is similar minutes to what PSG’s midfielders player.

In defence we are being linked with the equally experience Ezri Konsa. He would be a good option to replace Ben White and has bundles of experience playing both right back and centre back in the Premier League. Konsa would certainly allow Arteta to rest Saliba and Jurrien Timber more.

What Arteta then needs to do is trust Madueke and Eze a bit more, and trust Myles Lewis Skelly more. Their development could easily see them playing 500-1000 more minutes this season, taking the pressure off Saka, Martin Odegaard and Zubimendi.

Another factor is just how many Arsenal players seem to be currently playing with an injury.

We got heavily criticised in the run-in to the title for players pulling out of international duty due to injuries – but it is clear that many players are struggling.

Saka has been managing a long-term achilles injury. Adfter the World Cup he could probably do with going on a beach for 6 weeks. A proper rest before slowly being eased back into The Arsenal team 5 or 6 games into the season.

Rice is also clearly not 100%. Nor is Saliba. Both could do with not playing in the first 6-weeks of the season, giving their bodies time to recover. They could then come back in later in the season, have their game time managed a bit better, and be that bit fresher come May.

It will also be interesting to see if Arteta decides to rest and rotate a bit more in Europe.

In 2024/25 and 2025/26, PSG finished outside the top 8 and thus had to play an additional round. They did “just enough” to finish in the top half of the 9-16 grouping, ensuring they got an easier tie in the Knockout phase play-offs. They faced Monaco and Brest in that round respectively.

Despite playing an additional game, key players had still clocked up less Champions League minutes than Arsenal come the quarter final. Accept a couple of “lesser” results in the aim of keeping players fresher.

It is quite clear that this transfer window needs to be about reducing the minutes for key players, especially in those opening 6-8 weeks of the season.

Arsenal were so close to winning the Champions League last season. For 2026/27 we need to ensure the players that turn up in Madrid are fresher, without sacrificing the league for a push at European glory.

Keenos