With it set to be another busy summer for the Gunners, there's no guarantee that everything will go exactly to plan for Mikel Arteta and technical director Edu.
football.london understands that two forwards, a central midfielder and backup right-back are all on the club's shopping list, but the uncertain futures of several players will no doubt change initial plans.
Alexandre Lacazette, Eddie Nketiah and Mohamed Elneny see their contracts expire at the end of the season. Additionally, the likes of Bernd Leno, Pablo Mari, Hector Bellerin, Ainsley Maitland-Niles, Lucas Torreira, Matteo Guendouzi, Granit Xhaka and Nicolas Pepe could all leave permanently.
READ MORE: Arsenal cannot complete Cody Gakpo and Darwin Nunez deals until Mikel Arteta solves hidden issue
The Premier League confirmed on Thursday that teams will be allowed to make five substitutions instead of three from next season. This, along with the likely participation of European football, means Arsenal will have to significantly improve squad depth.
However, two players that are unlikely to arrive at London Colney in the coming months are Tammy Abraham and Patrik Schick, who have both attracted interest over the course of the current campaign after racking up an impressive record in front of goal.
Abraham, who has previously been at the centre of serious interest from Arsenal, has scored 15 Serie A goals for AS Roma. Meanwhile, Schick is the second top goalscorer in the Bundesliga with 20 goals, behind Robert Lewandowski and ahead of Erling Haaland. But it now appears that their respective clubs will not entertain any offers this summer as the Gunners continue the search for added firepower.
Italian transfer expert Fabrizio Romano has said this week that Roma have no intention of selling Abraham, adding the player is happy with the club, Jose Mourinho and personal life in Italy. La Gazzetta dello Sport also reported that Roma haven’t received 'anything concrete' and a sale isn’t something they are currently considering.
Bayer Leverkusen CEO Fernando Carro on the other hand has made it very clear that Schick will not be going anywhere. "No, we will not sell Patrik Schick. There is no need to talk about that at all," he told Sky Germany. "We are very happy that he is with us, and we firmly count on him for the next few years."
So with those two updates in mind, the target list has seemingly been narrowed down, meaning there is now an extra incentive to focus on other names as the summer approaches.
Recent reports have suggested PSV Eindhoven's Cody Gakpo and Benfica's Darwin Nunez are under consideration. Both players can operate out wide or through the middle, possessing the versatility that Arteta loves his players to have. But their sparkling displays this season means Arsenal won't be the only club sniffing around, so forward-thinking and quick action may be required to secure their services.
The clarity surrounding the futures of Abraham and Schick can allow the Gunners to do that to a certain extent, while potentially sounding out other targets in the process. A host of names including Jonathan David, Alexander Isak and Dominic Calvert-Lewin are all said to be of interest, perhaps the latest developments indicate that a smaller group is being focused on by Arteta and Edu.
