When Arsenal players celebrated a top-four finish in the English Premier League, after the 1-0 win over Newcastle in the last game of the season, like they had just won a title, several pundits criticized them for being so elated with just qualifying for the Champions League.
There is nothing wrong in celebrating the win of course, especially after the season that Arsenal had endured, and after all AC Milan went even crazier after sealing their place in the Champions League on the last day of their season in the Serie A.
However, it is also understandable where the criticism comes from. Arsenal were one of the supreme teams in England during the late 1990s and early noughties, and to see the fall from grace has not been pretty, even if there might have been extenuating circumstances.
With the trophy drought now stretching to eight years, Arsenal have been criticized for prioritizing Champions League qualification, and the riches that come with it, over winning trophies.
However, Arsenal chief executive, who has come under a lot of criticism from the fans for letting go of some of the club's key players and not making adequate replacements, insisted the North London side's priority was winning silverware.
"Arsene and the team put together a remarkably strong and consistent run in the final stages of the season, a run of form of which we should all be proud," Gazidis told the club's official website. "It puts us into the Champions League fight for the 16th consecutive year.
"It is important to reiterate that for everyone at the club, qualification for the Champions League is not our ultimate ambition. Our majority owner Mr. (Stan) Kroenke has made it clear that while it's an achievement to make the Champions League our ultimate objective is to win the major trophies.
"We all share that clear ambition and will be driving the Club forward to achieve it. Arsene and I have already been planning what we need to do to strengthen so we are better placed next season.
"One thing is certain. The club is in a very strong position to move forward and our form of losing just one of our last 16 Premier League matches shows that we have a solid foundation on which to build for success."
Arsenal do need a few reinforcements, with a goalscoring striker a priority, while an experienced goalkeeper and a solid defensive midfielder are also deemed as necessary.
The Gunners are reportedly closing in on a move for Stevan Jovetic of Fiorentina, while they have also been heavily linked with moves for Real Madrid striker Gonzalo Higuain and David Villa of Barcelona.
Arsenal have looked at Maxime Gonalons of Lyon, Victor Wanyama of Celtic, Etienne Capoue of Toulouse and Bayer Leverkusen's Sven Bender in the defensive midfield department, while there are several names of goalkeepers that keep coming up on a regular basis, with Julio Cesar or Rene Adler looking like a possibility.
