Arsenal have a huge summer ahead of them and sporting director Edu and his team will be working on all fronts to secure talent for next season and move on the expendable assets for good fees. The focus will be on raising the level of the group and allowing Mikel Arteta a greater chance at effective rotation with a squad that can better challenge Manchester City.
The club’s sales reputation has been very poor and Edu will be under the microscope regarding the sales of players this summer with a number expected to command decent fees. It’s even more key this summer with the need to spend big being supported by any outgoings, of which there will be plenty.
With that in mind, football.london takes a look at what a perfect summer for the club might look like. Assessing all the incomings and outgoings, their potential prices and the controversy and debate surrounding some.
READ MORE: Edu Gaspar facing Arsenal primary transfer target ultimatum this summer amid £200m indications
Clear the decks
Well, Pablo Mari’s exit from Arsenal is already confirmed as Monza’s survival in Serie A means that an obligatory purchase clause in the Spaniard’s contract is activated earning the club around £6m in total. Ainsley Maitland-Niles is unlikely to have his contract extended with no plan for the one-year option to be activated and so the England international is also expected to leave.
Karl Hein was the third-choice goalkeeper this season but after Arthur Okonkwo’s impressive loans to Crewe Alexandria and Sturm Graz, who he joined in January, there’s a strong case for Hein, an Estonian international, to seek a permanent move elsewhere. In addition, Arsenal finally need to find an exit for Alex Runar Runarsson who has played very regularly with Alanyaspor in Turkey and been the number one goalkeeper all season and so has plenty of playing time to garner interest.
On to the defenders and Rob Holding’s spell with the club should come to a sad close. This season, his time in the team has highlighted to Mikel Arteta and the supporters that a better technical competitive option to William Saliba and Ben White is required. Under contract and being homegrown, Arsenal will hope to get into double-digit millions with a potential sale this summer.
From those sent on loan this season, Auston Trusty won Player of the Year with Birmingham and will not be short of suitors in the summer. Nuno Tavares, meanwhile, had a contrasting spell with Marseille, having some issues off the field and unable to notch a single assist, despite scoring six, on it but Arsenal will hope to make a profit on the sub-£10m fee they paid Benfica in 2021.
Lastly is Cedric Soares who joined Fulham for the final six months of the season. He has one year left on his Arsenal contract and they’ll be lucky to get any money for the ageing full-back in the window - could we again see another player paid off to move on?
Speaking of more of what Edu had told football.london what he calls ‘investments’ Arsenal may struggle to get a fee from club record signing Nicolas Pepe . The Ivorian spent time on loan with Nice in France but has suffered multiple injury issues with his knees and with a year left on his Arsenal deal, Edu will be lucky to get much money, if any, for him this summer.
Marquinhos joined the club only last summer and left on loan to Norwich where he got a goal and an assist on his debut in the Championship. However, since then the Brazilian has been unable to have much of an impact, although he has been called up for the Brazil under-20s this summer but it is difficult to see a future for him at Arsenal and any chance of turning a profit this summer should probably be taken.
The money-makers
There are more players expected to leave but some who should earn Arsenal a bit more. football.london understands that Granit Xhaka is close to a move to Bayer Leverkusen with the German club agreeing to a £13m deal with the Gunners.
Albert Sambi Lokonga is reportedly garnering interest from former Anderlecht coach Vincent Kompany at Burnley. The Gunners will hope to get close to the £17m they paid in 2021 to sign the midfielder.
Folarin Balogun , the new USMNT inductee, has not been able to stop scoring on loan in Ligue 1 with Reims. However, a future at Arsenal remains uncertain without a clear path to regular minutes as the starting number nine but his impressive form should give Edu reason to ask for a sizeable fee and certainly, in my view at least, above suggestions of £30m.
Similarly, Kieran Tierney who has been linked with both Newcastle United and Aston Villa, is another very sellable asset who just doesn’t seem to fit what Mikel Arteta wants from the position of left-back after the introduction of Oleksandr Zinchenko. Again, getting above that £30m threshold should be the aim, especially with rich suitors like the Magpies.
Eddie Nketiah is a bit of a left-field pick, especially considering Balogun has made my exit list. In short, and with respect, I think Arsenal, should they be looking to win a title, need an upgrade in the striker position and Nketiah is unlikely to be the man to push Gabriel Jesus, especially when the Gunners could do with an upgrade on even him too. Having signed a new deal, and still a homegrown option, his sale price could be used to help pay for a significant upgrade at centre-forward.
Marquee signings
Moving to the exciting part of course and incomings it is no secret that Declan Rice , as football.london understands it, is the club’s primary target for the summer. The England international is assumed to command a fee close to or even more than £100m and will likely take up the biggest chunk of the club’s summer budget and frankly, it would be amazing to see Arsenal pull off this deal.
However, with Xhaka going, another central midfielder is also needed and if they can indeed land Moises Caicedo too, again costing upwards of the £70m they saw rejected in January, it would effectively have sorted their midfield for the next half-decade plus. The Ecuadorian is a force to be reckoned with and a double deal for this pair would really make a statement to the league.
Moving into the forward line and this is where the budget is to be stretched but hopefully, the money made through both Balogun and Nketiah can allow some further investment. I believe a striker is the way forward with Leandro Trossard and Gabriel Jesus offering versatile quality to the options.
In a dream world, Eintracht Frankfurt's Randal Kolo Muani would be my number one pick but with talk of £100million-plus valuations, I cannot see how it would be possible but just know if it is… I want him! However, to try and bring this closer to reality another young striker whose name looks to be on the rise but whose valuation has not yet been spoken of in the triple-million-pound figures is Rasmus Højlund of Atalanta.
At 20 years old, he’s one of the names being spoken about as following in the likes of Erling Haaland’s footsteps. Another Scandinavian forward scoring goals for fun for Denmark, with five in four matches (finally the Danes seemingly have their striker after so many failed attempts in the last decade).
His first season in Serie A has returned eight goals in 31 matches. Granted, I’d want that to be higher but when considering his age, potentially and most importantly his profile, there’s so much more to come.
At 6’3" he offers the Gunners more physicality and Arteta more options He managed three assists too in the league and in this Arsenal side it is easy to see Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli benefitting from his presence and so, unless the wild money is there for the £100m strikers, he is my pick.
Competitive recruitment
Less expensive competitive options will be needed. Arsenal cannot be spending £70million-plus on everyone but at the same time need players who can match or better their current starters. Therefore, the Gunners need to get smart and the best place to achieve this I think is at the back.
Therefore, focusing on the defence, which along with the midfield should rightly be the priority for the club this summer. Arsenal have scored a lot of goals but conceding 42 and keeping just three home clean sheets is always going to undermine any hopes of a Premier League title.
With Tierney moving on a left-back will be needed. Joao Cancelo has been mentioned but from my perspective, his price tag and his employer, Man City, for me make this deal too tricky therefore to save some money but not skimp on quality means I’d look to contract Raphael Guerreiro on a free transfer when his deal with Dortmund expires this summer off the back of a five-goal and fourteen-assist campaign.
On the right-hand side, I love the links with Mohamed Simakan. I have already written about why the Frenchman would be the perfect player to cover both right centre-half and full-back but is likely still to be relatively pricey for the Gunners having only signed a deal with RB Leipzig last December.
READ NEXT:
Martin Odegaard set for talks over Arsenal contract as Gunners continue proactive approach
How Man United signing Kim Min-jae can secure Arsenal transfer windfall
Premier League loophole allows Arsenal to accelerate Moises Caicedo transfer and two more deals
Arsenal discover route to avoid nightmare Champions League draw - but Liverpool can change it
Arsenal news and transfer LIVE: All the latest updates from the Emirates Stadium
