It's no secret that this summer is going to be an important one for Arsenal in terms of recruitment. "We want to take the club to the next level," Mikel Arteta said in his press conference ahead of the final game of the season against Everton. "That's the ambition. In order to do that we have a very clear plan again, how we want to do it and execute it, and there are no secrets. We need resources and we need to increase the quality and the depth of the squad."
The Gunners have already completed the signing of Matt Turner from New England Revolution to replace the outward bound Bernd Leno, and Edu has no intention of stopping there. football.london understands strikers Tammy Abraham and Gabriel Jesus are targets, while the club are also looking at Youri Tielemans and Aaron Hickey to bolster their central midfield and full-back positions.
As much as getting the right players in is important though, moving certain players on is going to be key too. Ainsley Maitland-Niles, Lucas Torreira, Hector Bellerin and Runar Alex Runarsson are just a few of the players who seem certain to leave this summer. One player whose future is less clear, though, is Pablo Mari.
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The Spanish defender was a key part of Arteta's side last season, making 18 appearances after returning from an ankle injury, and starting key games such as both Europa League semi-finals against Villarreal. He established himself as a leader during this period, forming close relationships with several young players including Gabriel Martinelli in particular.
Game time this year proved harder to come by following the £50million signing of Ben White. The England international quickly formed a strong partnership with Gabriel leaving cup games as Mari's only real chance of minutes due to the lack of European football. Unfortunately though, the 28-year-old missed the Carabao Cup clashes with Leeds and Sunderland, due to illness and Covid respectively, meaning that his only appearance between September and January came in the 3-0 win over AFC Wimbledon.
The decision was therefore taken to send him out on loan to Udinese in January. He did well out in Italy making 15 appearances and scoring twice, including a stunning strike against Fiorentina.
The performances were so impressive that I Bianconeri sporting director Pierpaolo Marino admitted they were hopeful of signing him. “Mari is an Arsenal player, it is already unusual for such a player to come to Udinese, not because we don’t deserve it, but because, in general, the path is the opposite," he said last month. “It will be difficult to keep him, but we will try.”
However, sources close to the club have revealed to football.london that that move may now be put on hold due to uncertainty over their managerial situation. Udinese announced earlier this week that they would not be renewing the contract of caretaker boss Gabriele Cioffi, who had replaced former Chelsea assistant Luca Gotti in December. Cioffi played a key part in bringing Mari to the Stadio Friuli and the two are thought to have struck up a close bond.
"When I arrived in January, I had a clear and precise idea," said Mari in an interview with Gazetta dello Sport. "I told the coach and [club owner] Gino Pozzo that I was coming to play. But I realised that I had to earn the job day after day, workout after workout. [Head coach] Gabriele Cioffi was the first who welcomed me, well, here."
I Bianconeri are likely to wait until they employ a new manager before deciding whether to push ahead with plans to make the 28-year-old's move permanent. On top of this, Udinese's financial limitations mean that a deal could be difficult. Mari has two years left on his contract at the Emirates and Arsenal are keen to recoup as much of the £14million that they paid to bring him in from Flamengo as possible. I Bianconeri though have only ever spent more than that twice in their entire history, meaning that the Gunners could be set to face a financial hit.
The centre-back situation in North London is a little unclear as things stand. Dinos Mavropanos has already moved on to Stuttgart, but there is still yet to be any communication with William Saliba over what the plans are for his future, although Arteta has stated that he wants the Frenchman to come back. Rob Holding, meanwhile, is also ahead of Mari in the pecking order as well as first choice pairing Gabriel and White.
For his part, Mari has expressed a desire to stay in Serie A where he feels the league's style suits his game. "It's the right league for me.," he said. "Very tactical. I try to bring the attacker towards me. I really like having the ball and here it can be done and then there is the battle and I like having a battle on the pitch.
"I would like to stay in Italy. I'm very well at Udinese and I'd be happy to take the club even higher in the standings. Of course, I still have a two-year contract with Arsenal."
The Spaniard has now gone on holiday with his family ahead of the upcoming season, and posted on social media to reveal that he is unclear where his future lies at present time. "A good season full of changes comes to an end," he wrote on Instagram. "My time at [Udinese] has given me the opportunity to know a wonderful city, a team and fans that are the pride of Udine. Thank you to everyone for your incredible support throughout the season. It's time to rest, recharge batteries and see what the future holds."
At time of writing he is set to report back to London Colney for pre-season training with the rest of the Arsenal players when they return from their summer break. However, if the Udinese managerial situation is resolved quickly, that could well change.
