5 things that just don't change at the Emirates Stadium

It's a standing joke among Arsenal supporters that the club remains stuck in some kind of never-ending Groundhog Day where every season keeps churning out the same storylines. Normally that feeling is never stronger than at the end of the season, when the Gunners make their familiar push to salvage a disappointing campaign by finishing on a high and with yet another Champions League berth in the bag. This time, though, it's deja vu after only one game. The weekend's humbling 4-3 loss to Liverpool at the Emirates followed a script that too many fans feel they know by heart these days. Here's a look at five things that just don't seem to change at Arsenal. Opening-day disappointment Arsenal's loss on Sunday continued what is becoming a worryingly familiar pattern at the Emirates. It was the team's third opening-day stumble at the Emirates in four years, following a 2-0 defeat against West Ham last August and a 3-1 humbling by Aston Villa in 2013. In fact, Arsenal only have one win on the opening matchday in the last seven years: beating Crystal Palace 2-1 in 2014. It's a sharp contrast to Wenger's earlier record between 2001-2009, when the Gunners won eight of nine Premier League curtain raisers -- drawing the other one against Aston Villa in 2006. Indeed, it raises questions as to why Wenger's recent teams never seem quite ready for the start of the season. Lack of signings Arsenal are starting to rack up the same number of missed chances in the transfer window as they did in front of goal last season. The past few summers have served up plenty of frustration for Arsenal fans, who crave nothing more than big-name signings, as deals for the likes of Gonzalo Higuain, Luis Suarez and Karim Benzema have all failed to materialise. This time, the prospects of a big summer looked bright when Wenger outlined a clear plan for his transfer window all the way back in May, targeting three players -- including a striker and a defender. And yet we're still waiting on the last two. While a deal for Valencia centre-back Shkodran Mustafi seems close (if a little late), there is still no sign of that elusive centre-forward. It's the third season in four years that Arsenal enter the Premier League campaign still waiting to pull the trigger on major deals. In 2013, Wenger had not spent at all in the transfer market until a Deadline Day scoop for Mesut Ozil. Last year, he only brought in goalkeeper Petr Cech in the summer and couldn't pull off a deal for a striker in August. Wenger's recent record of making late deals indicates that major acquisitions could still be coming, but that doesn't remove the feeling that they should already have been made. Boos at the Emirates What do you get at the Emirates when you add together the first two items on this list? Jeers from the home crowd, of course. The Gunners were booed off the pitch after the Liverpool game, a sound that became all too familiar during the Spring when their Premier League title challenge fell apart. Liverpool's fourth goal was greeted by the same chant about spending money on players that has been directed toward Wenger in recent seasons as well. It's one the Frenchman should know by heart at this stage but the atmosphere at the Emirates has become increasingly divided for some time now, and the feeling of the club being plagued by the same old problems all over again has done little to improve matters. Injury woes If all the other frustrations weren't bad enough, the injuries are piling up for Arsenal as well. There is rarely a point in the season when the Gunners have a fully fit squad, but the list of casualties is already worryingly long. After losing defender Per Mertesacker and Gabriel Paulista in preseason, Aaron Ramsey and Alex Iwobi both had to leave the Liverpool game with muscle injuries. Arsenal's fitness problems have been a serious concern for much too long, and the club's efforts to get to grips with them don't seem to be bearing any fruit. Ramsey has a long history of hamstring injuries and yet was rushed back into the squad for the Liverpool game while the likes of Ozil, Giroud and Laurent Koscielny were rested. The Wales midfielder could now be out for up to a month after limping off in the second half. The bounce-back We're getting a bit ahead of ourselves here, but this one isn't too hard to predict: Arsenal will bounce back, as they always do. In fact, "bounce back" has become one of Wenger's favourite phrases and he pulled it out again after the Liverpool game. Whether they'll challenge for the title this season is anyone's guess, but things could certainly look rosier for the Gunners again soon. If Ozil, Giroud and Koscielny all come back for Saturday's trip to champions Leicester and help Arsenal repeat last season's convincing win at the King Power Stadium, and if Wenger follows it up with a big signing or two before the end of the month, the optimism will return quickly to Emirates. Until we go through the cycle all over again. Thank for reading. Kindly use the share button... Follow @IamKevinJasper on Twitter