Arsenal have moved on from players who aren't in their plans well in recent years. Starting in the transformative 2022 summer which saw the core of Unai Emery's team leave permanently in bulk, Mikel Arteta has quickly redefined the XI.
Folarin Balogun, Matt Turner, Auston Trusty, and Rob Holding weren't kept hold of when it became clear that they did not have a role in the team after Arsenal came close to the title for the first time. A further cull followed last summer with Emile Smith Rowe, Eddie Nketiah, and Aaron Ramsdale all being sold.
In a cut-throat manner, Arsenal have discarded those who simply haven't worked properly for Arteta. Whether it is right or not, because there is an argument that Smith Rowe, for one, might have been used more and better over his last two years, there has been a ruthless efficiency to this from Arsenal.
Under Edu Gaspar's sporting leadership, they became a much better selling team. Now, with a summer of incoming activity already taking the front seat, it might have been missed that Arsenal have once more been proactive in their business elsewhere.
Nuno Tavares and Marquinhos have both been sold, further trimming down the list of loanees who did not have a future in north London, whilst Kieran Tierney and Jorginho have left at the end of their contracts.
Marquinhos arrived with high hopes of becoming an attacking star, possibly to provide support for Bukayo Saka, but never made the breakthrough. Meanwhile, Jorginho was a short-term buy as a Champions League winner to provide depth, experience and immediate know-how.
Before the end of June, Arsenal have done well to sort these low-key deals quickly. They will not drag on into the summer or cause Andrea Berta any headaches moving forward.
Having spent around £47million to buy the quartet, they have acted decisively now. Although Thomas Partey was much more of a first-team case, seeing him leave will be another player Arsenal do not have to worry about for long.
Again, whether this is considered right or not is a different debate. But having gotten to this stage already is undoubtedly a positive. The only remaining players who now need to be sorted out are Fabio Vieira (signed for £40million), Albert Sambi Lokonga (£15million), Karl Hein, and Reiss Nelson.
That is an extra £55million worth of players on top of the £47million from before to shift. Jakub Kiwior (£18million) and Oleksandr Zinchenko (£32million) are tied to possible defensive arrivals.
Zinchenko is more likely to leave after injuries and form saw him fall behind Myles Lewis-Skelly, Riccardo Calafiori, and Jurrien Timber in the pecking order. Kiwior proved himself a useful backup at the end of last season but has attracted attention previously and could be impacted if Arsenal were to sign Valencia centre-back Cristhian Mosquera.
These are key transfers with money at play here than Tavares and Marquinhos would get back. That does not make the others any less important.
Arsenal have become a team happy enough to move on when it's not working and that is crucial for fostering a competitive environment. It benefits nobody to have players hanging around for the sake of it.
Although Arteta needs more depth to his squad, which some of these players might give him, he clearly has not trusted them as much of late either. Is it better to have more players just for rotation or risk injuries with a smaller squad full of those that the manager completely backs?
Arteta has chosen the latter but knows he needs more in certain areas, hence the targeting of attackers this window. That will come at a price and Arsenal can offset that with transfers of those who aren't in Arteta's vision.
To have moved on smoothly from four of those by now is an advantage when it comes to getting other deals done. It allows Arsenal the time and room to dedicate to other players who are in the plans.
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Arsenal Manager Mikel Arteta, Bukayo Saka, Martin Odegaard and Gabriel Jesus with the Arsenal Therapy Dog Win during the Arsenal Men's team group shoot at London Colney on September 18, 2023
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