Arsenal's resurgence as a force in the Premier League over the last few years has been built upon a succession of generally successful transfer windows.

Mikel Arteta and Edu have, more often than not, got it right in the market over the last few years.

That said, you don't have to go too far back to find a period in history in which the Gunners kept making costly mistakes, with perhaps Shkodran Mustafi being a name that sticks out in fans' minds.

However, there was a player that the club signed in the summer of 2018 who was arguably a bigger flop than the German – and he was free.

Stephan Lichtsteiner at Arsenal

The player in question is Swiss veteran and Juventus legend Stephan Lichtsteiner, who made the surprise switch to Arsenal in June 2018 after his contract with the Old Lady expired.

Lichtsteiner had just come off of a Serie A-winning campaign with Juventus – as he had every season he was at the club – and so there was quite a bit of expectation that he would be able to carry over some of his know-how and no-nonsense style to an Arsenal side who had just seen Arsène Wenger leave the club after 22 years at the helm.

Gunners legend Ian Wright welcomed the arrival of the experienced right-back, tweeting, "Great business by the club. Loving what's happening at Arsenal." In all, it certainly looked like an intelligent bit of business to sign a player with a remarkable history of winning league titles, especially with the upheaval the Gunners were enduring at the time.

However, as most Arsenal fans will tell you, the former Lazio ace's time in north London did not go quite as swimmingly as most were expecting – to put it mildly.

In all, he made 23 appearances for Unai Emery's side in the 2018/19 season – 19 of which were starts – registered just two goal involvements and, in his 14 Premier League appearances, he won just six games and averaged a match rating of 6.27, as per WhoScored.

Whether it was his age or just a lack of preparedness, the man who had been one of the best defenders in Italy for years just looked utterly out of his depth in English football, with former Arsenal player Alex Scott claiming he was "all over the place" in one particular outing against Manchester City.

Stephan Lichtsteiner's post-Arsenal career

With the writing firmly on the wall, the then-35-year-old left the club in the summer of 2019 and joined Bundesliga outfit FC Augsburg.

Unfortunately, however, he didn't fare much better in Germany and made just 17 starts across the 2019/20 season, although he did manage to help the club just about stave off relegation, as they finished in 15th place on 36 points.

Ultimately, while fans might label the £35m signing of Mustafi as the worst transfer in Arsenal's history – and not without reason – Lichtsteiner's time in N5 will always feel more disappointing.

Player

Lichtsteiner

Mustafi

Appearances

23

151

Goal Involvements

2

14

Trophies

0

3

After all, the German, for all of his nightmare-inducing antics at the back, did help the club win two FA Cups, playing every game up to the semi-finals in 2017 and then playing 87 minutes of the semi-final against City in 2020, a game the club won 2-0.

So, while he was never good enough to play for the club, his 151 appearances, two FA Cups and a Community Shield constitute a legacy the Swiss full-back simply doesn't have in N5.

Thankfully, such additions now look resigned to the past in the Arteta era…