Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta admits that he's 'disappointed' by the club's failure to sign a single player in the January transfer window. It was a surprisingly quiet month at the Emirates, with no new signings made and no first-team players leaving. That's despite Arteta and Co. attempting to bring in a top-level striker, one who could help cut the six-point gap to Premier League leaders Liverpool. Arsenal made a £60million bid for Ollie Watkins which was rejected by Aston Villa and also explored signing summer target Benjamin Sesko from RB Leipzig. But the Gunners ended up with no one, forcing Arteta to rely on Kai Havertz as their starting striker for the remainder of this season, as Gabriel Jesus has been ruled out after rupturing his ACL.

Bukayo Saka, Arsenal's top goalscorer, is also still out injured after tearing his hamstring in December. There were faint for hopes that Arsenal could bring in reinforcements on transfer deadline day but things didn't transpire, leaving Arteta to feel disappointed. Asked about their attempts to make signings in January, the Gunners boss replied: "We had a clear intention which is there is a window open. For the players that can impact it, we haven't achieved it. We are disappointed. But we are very aware that we only want to bring certain types of player.".

Arteta, speaking ahead of Wednesday's Carabao Cup semi-final second leg away to Newcastle, also explained: "The intention the improve the squad if we have the capacity to do it. We focus in the things that we have to continue to do.". On the reasons a player wasn't signed, he simply said: "It was a combination of things." Arteta then dismissed the theory that the players targeted didn't have the right character. "That wasn't an issue with any player that we were trying to find," he declared.

Should Arsenal have signed a striker? Have your say in the comments section. Arteta did find a positive in Arsenal's lack of spending, which gives them more scope for the summer transfer window. "An extra card!" he smiled. "I don't know, what I mean about that is the means that can make us much better financially.". Acknowledging that he's now reliant on the inconsistent Havertz, Arteta responded: "I think Kai has played so many games and been so important when some big players weren't available.".

The Gunners head to St James' Park on Wednesday needing to overturn a 2-0 deficit from the first leg at home. Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.