Following the announcement of two contracts and the sales of two players, Mikel Arteta and sports director Edu are looking to clinch a few deals.
William Saliba’s new contract is just one of four agreements the club has announced in the last week, indicating that the summer transfer window at Arsenal is already in full swing.
While Reiss Nelson and the France international will be starters for the upcoming campaign, Pablo Mari and Granit Xhaka have left the club permanently to join Monza and Bayer Leverkusen, respectively. This earned the Gunners a combined £27.4 million windfall.
They come after Ainsley Maitland-Niles, a number of players from the men’s and women’s first teams, Under-23s, Under-18s, and scholars, as well as Nikolaj Moller joining St. Gallen on a permanent basis and the announcement of season-long loan deals for Catalin Cirjan and Mazeed Ogungbo.
But Mikel Arteta and sporting director Edu Gaspar are not done. Having already signed Kai Havertz, the plan is to ensure the Arsenal first-team squad is strong enough to compete for the Premier League title next season as well as going far as possible in both domestic cup competitions and the Champions League.
In fact, the Gunners pair are currently very occupied with football, according to happenings and reports from the last 24 hours or so.London lists the deals that are now active because it appears that more announcements to please fans will come soon.
Newest hires
On Tuesday night, it was said that a complete deal had been struck between the Gunners and West Ham United about the acquisition of Declan Rice. The £105 million England international will surpass Jack Grealish’s £100 million transfer to Manchester City as the most expensive British player ever and set a new club record.
The widespread rumors that Rice had a physical on Friday indicate that he will join Arsenal sooner rather than later. But will he be introduced before Jurrien Timber or alongside of him? After a contract with Ajax was reached last Wednesday, this transaction is likewise nearing completion.
Outgoings
As revealed by football.london earlier in the week, the Gunners are open to selling Thomas Partey, Nicolas Pepe, Cedric Soares, Folarin Balogun, Auston Trusty, Nuno Tavares and Runar Alex Runarsson in the summer transfer window if a suitable offer comes in. Meanwhile, Albert Sambi Lokonga has gone on record stating he would be open to a departure in order to play regularly next season.
However, Sturm Graz director Andreas Schicker recently confirmed his team is in talks with Arsenal over a second loan deal for goalkeeper Arthur Okonkwo. However, Schicker also revealed his side face competition from some unnamed clubs in England for the goalkeeper’s signature. As of right now, there is nothing to suggest deals are in place for any of the aforementioned players.
According to Schicker, who spoke to the Austrian news site Laola1, “We are still in the running for another loan, but there are also inquiries for him on the English market.” Goalkeepers have a disposition that is both young and malleable.
