Mikel Arteta faces the daunting task of reducing Arsenal's squad size before the transfer window closes.
The Gunners have been busy in the summer, making several high-profile signings, but now the focus is on offloading players. Arsenal ideally want to facilitate the departure of at least seven first-teamers from the Emirates Stadium.
There have been significant additions to the squad in 2023 including Declan Rice, Jurrien Timber, Kai Havertz and David Raya and now there is a need to balance the numbers by letting go of surplus players. It comes amid speculation linking Ajax's Mohammed Kudus with a move to Arsenal while and Arteta might consider bringing in another defender after Timber's injury.
Things haven't moved as quickly with departures. Granit Xhaka's move to Bayer Leverkusen for a potential fee of £22million was finalised earlier in the window, along with permanent exits for Matt Turner, Auston Trusty and Pablo Mari. Alex Runarsson and Marquinhos were loaned out.
READ MORE: Arsenal tell fans 'how the Champions League works' and rivals can't stop laughing
Despite these exits, Arsenal aim to sanction at least seven more departures before the transfer window deadline on September 1, according to football.london (via the Mirror), with the Gunners 'working hard' to find new clubs for the players.
Arteta has already labelled Arsenal's bloated first-team squad of 32 players as "unsustainable." The sheer size of the squad has led to some players being left out due to a lack of space in the dressing room.
Addressing the issue is a top priority for the club. But time is running out, with little over a week remaining in the transfer window.
Arsenal want to avoid a situation similar to Chelsea, who struggled to manage their large squad. Finding suitable destinations for players who are not part of Arteta's plans has proven challenging so far, though.
While the Emirates head coach has insisted that Kieran Tierney is in his plans, Arsenal are open to offers for the left-back. Celtic, Aston Villa and Real Sociedad have shown interest in the Scotland international.
Albert Sambi Lokonga is another player who could leave. Brighton are keen on a loan deal, but the Gunners would prefer a permanent transfer. Burnley's interest in the Belgian has cooled following their signing of Aaron Ramsey from Villa.
Rob Holding, who was not named in Arsenal's first two Premier League matchday squads, could also be offloaded. Holding has one year left on his contrac and Besiktas made a £2 million bid for him earlier in the window.
The Turkish club are also interested in signing Nicolas Pepe, who has 12 months remaining on his contract. Cedric Soares has not received any approaches from interested suitors yet, despite his efforts to regain fitness after a loan spell at Fulham.
Nuno Tavares is a player Arsenal would like to sell, with Nottingham Forest showing interest in the 22-year-old left-back. West Ham and Aston Villa are also monitoring the Portuguese's situation.
Folarin Balogun, who impressed on loan at Reims last season, has attracted attention from sides across Europe. Monaco are expected to make a fresh offer for the talented USA forward, who was wanted by Inter Milan and Brighton earlier in the window.
This article was crafted with the help of AI tools, which speed up Dailystar.co.uk ' s editorial research. A content editor reviewed this content before it was published.You can report any errors to [email protected]
Source: Read Full Article