Former Arsenal defender Lee Dixon believes it was no disaster for England star Morgan Rogers to move to Chelsea instead of the Gunners.
Dixon has been impressed by Rogers, who moved to Chelsea from Aston Villa in a deal worth £117 million – but believes he was not a key signing for Mikel Arteta ahead of the new season.
During an exclusive conversation with BestBettingSites, Dixon said of Rogers: “I really like him as a player.
“I’m not sure why the deal broke down – it seemed as though he was heading to Emirates Stadium before suddenly diverting to Chelsea.
“He has a distinct, powerful ball-carrying style when driving into central space.
“But do Arsenal desperately need him?
“Given the profile of attacking players already in the squad, I’m not devastated to miss out.
“He would have added quality, but whether it came down to financial structure or wage demands at Chelsea, it wasn’t a deal-breaker for me.”
Room for improvement
Dixon has also cast doubt on just how much clubs should spend on Bradley Barcola as Liverpool reportedly weigh up a £130m offer for the Paris Saint-Germain forward.
He said: “I rate Barcola, but that’s a serious transfer fee [£100m+].
“Mind you, so is Vinícius Júnior, so it’s a case of weighing up your options.
“We don’t know how concrete the interest truly was for either player, but Barcola is still only 23 or 24.
“There’s room for development and raw naive talent there, yet he’s played enough high-level matches at PSG to prove he possesses the physical durability for top-flight football.
“But when figures like £130m or £140m get thrown around, it’s a massive outlay regardless of current market inflation.”
READ MORE: Transfer news: Man City agree £65.4m Rodri sale to Barcelona
Weakness at right-back
Dixon is slightly concerned that Arsenal duo Jurrien Timber and Ben White’s injury-prone records could leave a weakness at right-back in the forthcoming season.
He added: “You have to be concerned because historical injury records rarely lie.
“A player doesn’t go from picking up constant muscle niggles to suddenly managing seven injury-free seasons.
“The body dictates that.
“So yes, it remains a slight vulnerability.
“Arsenal have utility options who can plug holes – Riccardo Calafiori has filled in and Declan Rice can do a job there at a push, though you don’t want to pull Declan out of central midfield.
“They have cover for now, but if Ben White were to leave, they’d definitely need a replacement.”
READ NEXT: Consortium featuring Jeff Bezos agrees £1.65bn deal for 30% Liverpool stake
Juliette White 
Michael Davey