Transfer deadline day is finally upon us! Arsenal have already had a successful window, welcoming two new additions to Emirates Stadium while saying goodbye to a handful of others.
Sporting director Edu Gaspar secured a £21million deal for Leandro Trossard on January 20, with the Belgian already showing he can add quality to Mikel Arteta's attack. The fee could rise to as high as £27million, with the 28-year-old signing a contract until 2027.
Jakub Kiwior then became the Gunners' second signing with the Polish centre-back joining from Italian side Spezia. Arsenal agreed a £21million deal to sign the young star, with the signing adding quality and depth in defence.
READ MORE: Arsenal can seal Mikel Arteta's perfect deadline day with Chelsea and Moises Caicedo transfers
While no senior players have left Arsenal this month, a number of youngsters have including Harry Clarke who joined Ipswich Town for an undisclosed fee. Elsewhere, Brooke Norton-Cuffy was loaned out to Coventry City and Miguel Azeez joined Wigan on a deal until the end of the season.
Business is not expected to stop there though and it could be a busy January transfer deadline day for the Gunners. Mikel Arteta has already openly admitted that he wants to bring in a midfielder and football.london understands Arsenal remain in talks with Brighton midfielder Moises Caicedo.
Edu has submitted two bids for the Ecuador but both have been rejected. Brighton's stance remains that they do not want to sell despite the player's pleas on social media to be allowed a move. As well as Caicedo, Real Valladolid's Ivan Fresneda remains of interest to Arsenal but a deal doesn't appear likely this window. That could pose a problem if Cedric Soares joins Fulham, who are expected to complete a six month loan for the Portugal international.
Everton's Amadou Onana has also been linked, while Martin Zumbimendi of Real Sociedad is also on the radar. Surprisingly, Chelsea's Jorginho is a player Mikel Arteta is interested in and a deal could be thrashed out between the Gunners and the Blues.
But what exactly will happen on deadline day? football.london's Arsenal writers Kaya Kaynak, Tashan Deniran-Alleyne and Tom Canton, as well as Arsenal Content Editor Sam Truelove try to predict the last day of the January 2023 window.
Kaya Kaynak - Chief Arsenal correspondent
I have to say at this point I'd be surprised if Arsenal did manage to sign Moises Caicedo. Brighton have told them to back off twice now, and it's hard to see them changing that stance unless a crazy bid comes in. Arsenal have already shown with the Mykhailo Mudryk deal that they won't do that this window so it's looking like a bit of a non starter at the moment despite what the player might be doing on social media.
There are targets beyond that and Ibrahima Bamba is a player Arsenal have looked at. Martin Zubimendi is another on the radar, but both feel more like summer deals as things stand. The Gunners do want to bring in a midfielder though, so maybe they could try to hurry those along. As far as I'm aware a move for Youri Tielemans is not happening however.
Whether Arsenal do bring in a player or not it is not going to affect their pursuit of Declan Rice who is a top target for the summer. Chelsea are also interested in the England international though, so it will be far from simple.
As for exits this January, Marquinhos is close to completing a loan move to Norwich. Several other youngsters could follow him, while Salah-Eddine Oulad M'Hand may return from his injury hit loan spell with Hull. Cedric meanwhile is hopeful of completing a loan move to Fulham, but the Cottagers will need to make Shane Duffy's loan from Brighton permanent before anything can be finalised there.
Tashan Deniran-Alleyne - Arsenal Writer
Come 11pm, I predict Arsenal will have signed a midfielder as a deal for Moises Caicedo gets over the line as a third and final bid of £75m including add-ons proves impossible for Brighton & Hove Albion to reject. I haven't even considered a scenario where this move isn't completed so I can't speak of any alternatives.
Having signed Trossard and Kiwior, I don't see any other incomings on deadline day - although I can see Arteta and Edu springing a surprise just like last January when Auston Trusty was signed out of nowhere and immediately loaned back to Colorado Rapids for the remainder of the season.
I do expect a trend of outgoings on transfer deadline day to continue with Marqiunhos and Cedric sealing loan moves to Norwich City and Fulham respectively. There could also be some u21 players heading out on loan too, so that's something to keep an eye on as the day unfolds.
Tom Canton - Arsenal Writer
Here we go again. A deadline day where Arsenal are in desperate need of a midfielder and flashbacks to just five months ago when the club were desperately trying to convince Aston Villa to sell Douglas Luiz.
Moises Caicedo and the likelihood of his transfer just seem like a bit of a dream. Brighton are adamant that they do not want to sell their star midfielder despite the Gunners submitting offers which are far and beyond what his probable genuine market value is for a player with just a year’s worth of Premier League experience.
As Arsenal do though, they have potential backup options and Jorginho has emerged as a potential one. It is a player Mikel Arteta has liked for some time, having also looked at the Italian in 2020, but there is a sense of significant disappointment to see the 31-year-old linked with such excitement around a young, energetic profile who could help the Gunners for the next decade.
I try to be an optimist, but I cannot get over the principled stance of Brighton and just fail to see how £5million incremental improvements to the offers will see the Seagulls buckle. It, therefore, leaves me with the prediction that Arsenal might regress to their old ways and sign a player Chelsea have no longer need for. I’m off to look at the Premier League table now to make myself remember that the people in charge have been very right of late and I should certainly be trusting them.
Sam Truelove - Arsenal Content Editor
Come May 28 when the Premier League trophy is handed to the captain of the team who finish first in the league, people may look back and say January 31 was a pivotal day in the title race. If Arsenal play their cards right, it could be Martin Odegaard lifting the trophy in front of jubilant supporters at Emirates Stadium.
It's a big day for the Gunners, most notably because they appear desperate to reinforce their central midfield. football.london understands Edu is locked in talks with Brighton over a deal for 21-year-old Moises Caicedo. The Seagulls have so far knocked back two bids, and it appears an extremely high offer is needed for the Ecuadorian to leave the south coast this month.
I predict a deal will be done, although it may take a deal sheet being submitted late into the night for the Gunners to get their man. Brighton announced the signing of a midfielder yesterday, and Caicedo himself has expressed his desire to leave, so a deal makes sense for both parties if the clubs can agree a fee.
Caicedo joining may impact Albert Sambi Lokonga, however, and I can't rule out the Belgian joining Brighton on a six-month loan as somewhat of a peace offering. Lokonga will not get the minutes he desires if Caicedo joins and he could even depart to somewhere other than Brighton if Arteta sanctions it.
To throw a spanner in the works, if the Caicedo deal does fall through, I expect Arsenal to still go in for a midfielder. Youri Tielemans could be an acquirable target, Ruben Neves too. But the most likely player to join could be Everton's Amadou Onana, who at 21 fits in with the Gunners' recent transfer policy. It's also important to say Declan Rice remains Arsenal's priority in the summer transfer window, so Edu may have one eye on that when conducting business on deadline day.
football.london understands Arsenal do have an interest in Chelsea midfielder Jorginho, but I just can't see a deal happening. Elsewhere, Cedric should complete his loan move to Fulham and it appears that move is all but done. The 31-year-old has been a useful player during his three years at the club but the time has come for him to depart.
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