Arsenal is in a very good place this summer with Edu Gaspar and the negotiation team working tirelessly to secure the arrivals of the key players Mikel Arteta wanted for the start of the 2023/24 campaign.
Last season, the acquisitions of Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko revolutionized the attacking play of the team, switching from the hold up play of Alexandre Lacazette and poaching style of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to the all-rounder ability of Jesus that has seen him work with his teammates like a well-oiled machine, allowing them to score boatload of goals, while he contributed with his own output as well. The long term injury at the World Cup derailed his progress but he ended the campaign on a good note and would certainly want to build on it. Big shout out to Eddie Nketiah, and at some point, Leandro Trossard for holding the fort in Jesus’ absence.
This summer, Arsenal made a surprise move for Kai Havertz, touting him as the heir apparent to the departed Granit Xhaka, and from what we have heard, both Declan Rice and Jurrien Timber have completed their medicals and their official announcements are imminent. These three players will take Arsenal’s spending to over £200 million this season, and if you add last season’s spending of £156m as well as the £140m Raul Sanllehi spent with half of it going to the Nicolas Pepe signing, and another £140m the season after that, it essentially means that “Silent Stan” has coughed out close to £600m for transfers since 2019, which is a clear statement of KSE’s intentions to invest and improve the team. In the same duration, the departures haven’t been as impressive from a financial standpoint, with Arsenal making sales of £54m in 2019 (highest sale was Alex Iwobi), only a meager £23m in 2020 (from Sam Greenwood to Leeds and Emi Martinez to Aston Villa, while Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Mesut Ozil, Sokratis Papasthathopoulos and Skhodran Mustafi were released from their contracts), just £25m in 2021 from the sale of Joe Willock to Newcastle (while Willian, Sead Kolasinac, Calum Chambers and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang were released from their contracts). Last season wasn’t any better with Bernd Leno and Matteo Guendouzi sales fetching up £17m, while Alex Lacazette and Hector Bellerin went for free.
In the same duration Arsenal made signings worth £600m, the Club has made sales of £142m.
So far this summer, the first confirmed departure was Ainsley Maitland-Niles who left on a free transfer and this was followed by Pablo Mari that sealed a £6m move to Monza, after activating a clause on the loan contract. Granit Xhaka is the latest player to head through the exit door, ending his seven-year stint with the club to return to Germany, and there are some players that need to leave to gain some quid and balance the books.
Without further ado, here are some potential departures Edu and the team can focus on this summer.
GOALKEEPERS
Aaron Ramsdale is the undisputed No. 1 at the club and Matt Turner was signed from the MLS to ease the blow caused by the departure of Bernd Leno to Fulham. However, Arsenal needs to get rid of the Viking goalie, Runar Alex Runarsson, who has endured a torrid stint at the club. Signed from FC Dijon based on the recommendations of goalkeeping coach, Inaki Cana, Runarsson struggled terribly in the Europa League games he played against weaker opposition and put on a horror show in the Carabao Cup loss to Manchester City a couple of seasons ago. In the last two seasons, he was loaned out to OH Leuven and Alanyaspor but both clubs didn’t retain his services. He has a year left on his contract, so Arsenal has to made a judgment call on whether to sell him this summer, or let him go on a Bosman next summer. I’m very certain his contract wouldn’t be renewed.
Elsewhere, Academy graduates, Karl Hein and Arthur Okonkwo, are not anywhere close to the first team, so they could be potentially sold, if they are not shipped out on loan again.
DEFENDERS
In defense, the potential candidates that can be sold are Kieran Tierney, Rob Holding, Auston Trusty, Nuno Taveres and Cedric Soares.
There has been so much speculation about a potential Tierney sale to Newcastle with whispers of the Scotsman currently disgruntled with playing second fiddle to Oleksandr Zinchenko. Tierney was undoubtedly Arsenal first-choice left back when he arrived from Celtic, even though his campaigns have been riddled with one injury after another, but in Zinchenko, Arteta fouind a player that offers a dimension to the teams attacking play, leaving Tierney relegated to the bench. It seems the interest has somewhat cooled, but I have a hunch that if a nice bid is placed for his services, Arsenal may be tempted to accept, allowing him to leave the Emirates.
His fellow left back, Nuno Taveres, didn’t win the fans over with his gung-ho playing style, but it was quite effective when he featured consistently as a wing back for Olympique Marseille. Sadly, the French outfit didn’t retain his services and with Taveres behind Tierney and Zinchenko in the pecking order, his sale has to be imminent. There has been reports that West Ham and Galatasaray are interested in his services, but I hope we reach “total agreement” with West Ham, with full payment upfront and no add-ons.
The imminent arrival of Jurrien Timber is set to bolster Arsenal’s ranks in center back and right back, which will make the likes of Holding, Trusty and Cedric redundant. Trusty just arrived from the MLS and had a successful loan spell with Birmingham City last season, even winning their Player of the Year award, but it wasn’t still enough for the club to sign him on a permanent basis, so he can make a case to fight for a place at Arsenal, or leave to the highest bidder.
As for Holding, he has been around the block for quite some time and has never nailed down a first-team berth, and I’d be expecting that he would want better for himself at 27, playing consistent football elsewhere. However, he seems quite comfortable being a squad player and earning his pay check, so the club may want to decide whether to leave him around or sell him. Cedric, on the other hand, is someone the club tried actively to ship out, and he was loaned to Fulham last season and was used sparingly. With the likes of Ben White, Timber and even Takehiro Tomiyasu ahead of him, I wouldn’t bat an eyelid if the Gunners cancel his contract and let him walk for free.
MIDFIELDERS
In midfield, the potential candidates that could head to the exit door are Thomas Partey and Albert Sambi Lokonga.
With the additions of Kai Havertz and world record British signing, Declan Rice, Arsenal’s midfield is going to be bolstered, but there have already been buzzes of potential exits for midfield general, Partey, and squad player, Lokonga. Lokonga has already declared his intentions to leave and will be hoping to reunite with his former boss, Vincent Kompany, with Burnley interested in signing him on loan, and while I’d love to see Partey stay, the interest from Juventus and Saudi Arabia are very strong and those greens he could earn in the desert, coupled with his age, and rising profile of the Saudi Pro League, would be tempting enough to see the Ghanaian leave. The thoughts of him playing alongside Rice, forming a Partey Jollof Rice combo will be awesome, so we just have to wait and see how it plays out. Arsenal is believed to have Southampton’s Romeo Lavia as a contingency if Partey jumps ship.
FORWARDS
The only forwards on the exit radar are Folarin Balogun and the current club record signing, Nicolas Pepe.
Since getting a runout of consistent competitive football with Stade de Reims last season, Balogun, has made his intentions clear of wanting to play first team football, and it seems unlikely that he would get it at Arsenal with the American forward behind Gabriel Jesus and Eddie Nketiah in the pecking order. He’s young and on demand in Europe, so I would expect Arsenal to strike the iron while its hot, cashing in on their man to make some good millions, with £50m being the targeted asking fee. Pepe, on the other hand, is a far cry from what we can get from Balogun. What we know for sure, is that we can never recoup the £72m we wasted on his services, and with Reiss Nelson signing a new contract, Arteta will use the Englishman as Saka’s backup ahead of Pepe, so the club needs to facilitate a move for him this summer, or he goes for free at the end of his deal. It will be shocking because prior to Havertz joining the club, the two most expensive deals after Pepe were Aubameyang and Lacazette, and they both left for free.
The onus is on Edu to work his magic as we hope the squad will be trimmed ahead of the new campaign.
Sayonara.
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