Everything that could go wrong, did.

Rock Bottom. 20th place in the Premier League. Zero goals scored, and nine goals conceded in three matches. Those are the current stats for Arsenal in the 2021 season, and there is no sign of life from anyone in the club. There is less than a day left in the transfer window, and besides year-long rumors of Houssem Aouar, are there any other key players Arsenal trying to bring in? This past Saturday, Sead Kolašinac started for Arsenal, a player who has been outcasted and rumored to a move for over six months now. The constant reminder from the Arsenal hierarchy to "trust the process" and "trust the project" poses the question (especially to the recruitment board), what is the ideal process?

Manager Mikel Arteta urged the club that better players were needed at the end of last season if the Gunners want to succeed next season. Fast forward three months, and there's not much to speak on. Yes, Martin Ødegaard was brought in, Ben White was brought in, and even Albert Sambi Lokonga (who has shined in his two matches for Arsenal). The unfortunate side of this is that none of these guys will provide that immediate top-six fight in the Premier League table. It's not a knock on these players, but Arsenal technical director Edu Gasper has to be held accountable for what he has done this transfer window. He has made Arsenal the highest spending Premier League club in the window but has not brought in one player with the Premier League experience to lift this team up from what it was missing last season.

Edu has also faced severe pushback on getting players out that aren't in Arteta's plans for this season. Is it even realistic at this point to believe that players will be brought in to help this starting 11? Seven of the 11 players that started today for Arsenal were there during Arsene Wenger's last season with the club. The only ones that weren't were Martin Ødegaard, Bernd Leno, Kieran Tierney, and Cédric Soares. Edu must be held responsible for why Arsenal is sitting in the relegation zone for the third weekend in a row. It's hard to make valid points on what he has done well since becoming technical director, and when there isn't one outlier that was positive on his résumé, that's a serious concern.

Edu should not take all the brunt of what is wrong with Arsenal. Arteta now has to take the blame as well. The decision to loan out William Saliba and keeping Pablo Marí, Rob Holding, and Callum Chambers ahead of the French international is unfathomable. Saliba wouldn't solve all the problems with the club, but there is no way to say he would've played as bad as these center-backs have in the first three matches of the season. The COVID-19 outbreaks and injuries right towards the end of preseason added to the perfect storm that created this disastrous start. A win against Brentford would've been more than likely had Gabriel, Aubameyang, Lacazette, and Ødegaard been available.

It's a challenging task to beat the Champions League winners, Chelsea, and the Premier League winners, Manchester City. It's not that Arsenal lost those games, but the way they did. There was no sign of structure, and once the first goal was conceded, there was no fight back. Arsenal works exceedingly hard to try to put a goal in the back of the net, but it takes just a tiny mental lapse defensively for them to concede one. This happened in all three games so far this season, which means now this is a habit that Arsenal has developed. Arteta must now face serious questions of how he will reign back in the squad and his tactics during the international break.

The positive of all this is Arsenal will have two weeks to prepare against Norwich City. It'll be at the Emirates, and if there is any sign of Arsenal struggling against this newly promoted opponent, the fans may turn their attention to the Arsenal manager. If Arteta needs a run of wins, it couldn't come at a perfect time. Five of their next six matches are against opponents middle of the table or lower. While Arsenal is well below all these opponents on the table, the squad they have is much more talented. If the Gunners can't make a run in this span, it will undoubtedly be the time to look for a new manager. There is too much at stake this season to be in a relegation battle. Post-match, Arsenal captain Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang told the media, "I think we need to talk between us players. I think this is now important because we are Arsenal and we need pride. That's it. We have to talk and say the truth between each other, be honest and as I said, raise the level."

The situation isn't any easier with several players demanding a transfer. Yesterday afternoon, Ainsley Maitland-Niles posted on his Instagram, "All I wanna do is go where I'm wanted and where I'm gonna play @Arsenal." It's reported that Maitland-Niles is on the outside looking in, with no participation in first-team practices. Arsenal will let him go if the right offer arrives, but as it stands right now, he is an Arsenal player who's outcasted. As for Hector Bellerin, he has asked for a transfer since last May; it seems that he will be loaned out to Real Betis for the season. Willian has moved on from the club as reported by Fabrizio Romano that Willian and Arsenal mutually agreed to terminate his contract to allow his move to Brazilian club Corinthians. Another loanee is Reiss Nelson, who will be joining Feyenoord on a season long. Meanwhile, other players like Sead Kolišinac, Mohamed Elneny, Alexandre Lacazette, and Eddie Nketiah are likely to remain at Arsenal for the season unless a bid from a Turkish club is to come within the next week. Both Lacazette and Nketiah will have expiring contracts and will be able to talk to clubs in January on a free transfer deal.

As if the transfer window wasn't bad enough, but with Granit Xhaka earning a three-match ban with his red card against Man City, now Arsenal are down to three anchoring midfielders. Thomas Partey is coming off an injury, Albert Sambi Lokonga has shown promise, and Mohamed Elneny has seriously struggled in the minutes he's shown this season. With it looking ever more likely that no other midfielder will be brought in, those will be the three options for the Norwich City, Burnley, and Tottenham match. The depth could prove problematic, and the next run of games is critical if Arsenal has any chance of saving their season.

By the following international break, things could look very different at Arsenal, for better or worse. The questions will continue to erupt from fans and the media about how Arsenal can turn around this dreadful form. Now with over £150m spent in the transfer window on six players, is it enough to even challenge for European competition? Only time will tell, but as things currently stand, Arsenal is in trouble. Both Edu and Arteta must realize that their jobs are now on the line. There is no room for error any longer, and that if the club continues to be in a relegation battle, drastic change must be taken into action.

It is hard to remain positive on the project being built at Arsenal when the evidence shown thus far is alarming. Still, for now, the atmosphere that best describes Arsenal is "cautiously holding your breath" as everyone waits for the international break to end. After the break, all attention from the entire league will be on Arsenal vs. Norwich City at the Emirates on Sept 11. After that match, there will either be celebratory applause or a deafening roar for change.