The summer of 2025 may have been Arsenal’s greatest in terms of recruitment. Under the stewardship of Andrea Berta, the Gunners signed eight players, dramatically improving the squad depth and quality within the first team.
Mikel Arteta now has all the tools at his disposal to win trophies. Despite his side’s 1-0 loss to Liverpool prior to the international break, there is still optimism that Arsenal can lift silverware come May. Albeit that is now expected of a manager who has spent over £1 billion since his arrival in North London.
There are still concerns that the club is inefficient when it comes to selling players, but the Gunners have reduced their wage bill, whilst also cutting loose deadwood that has accumulated over the Arteta era.
In this transfer review special, VAVEL takes a look at Arsenal’s summer business, rating the acquisitions and departures whilst also assessing the impact the recruitment has on this season and beyond.
Major Incomings
Total expenditure: £254 million (values taken from Transfermarkt)
Arsenal spent a total of £254 million in the transfer window. Another considerable summer outlay, but this time the Gunners were able to bolster their squad depth significantly, essentially completing the puzzle that has taken Mikel Arteta nearly six years to build.
(Credit: James Gill - Danehouse/ Getty Images).
Firstly, North London welcomed another Chelsea player to the Emirates Stadium. However, the signing of Kepa Arrizabalaga was lauded as shrewd business by many, mainly due to the Spaniard only costing his new club £5 million, a minimal fee for someone of his quality and experience. The goalkeeper should be a solid deputy to David Raya, providing cover if the number one is injured or rested.
Martin Zubimendi was the second player and Spaniard to arrive at Arsenal. The Real Sociedad academy graduate was swayed from joining Liverpool when the Gunners sought to sign Mikel Merino last summer. Zubimendi was prepared to wait one more season to link up with Arteta in North London for a sizeable fee of around £60 million.
There is hope that he can improve the Gunners’ transitional play by instilling an increased tempo within the team. Last season, Arsenal were too slow at times and became predictable; teams who set up with a low block reaped the rewards on multiple occasions, taking home points from a toothless Gunners side.
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Another midfielder became Arsenal’s third summer signing. Christian Norgaard made the short journey from West to North London as he swapped Brentford for Islington. Norgaard arrived for a modest £10 million fee (helped by his contract ticking over to the 12-month mark) and should provide useful cover for fellow newcomer Zubimendi at the base of midfield.
Chelsea were not finished when it came to rehoming their unwanted players across London. Noni Madueke swapped Blue for Red as he became a Gunner for almost £50 million. The former PSV Eindhoven forward was one of **Mikel Arteta**’s priority incomings: a versatile wide player who can cover for and challenge the likes of Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Martinelli and Leandro Trossard. Madueke has impressed in flashes so far and was arguably his club’s best attacker vs Liverpool.
Arteta and Berta saw it necessary to reinforce the Premier League’s best defence this summer, and the first addition to the backline was Valencia’s Cristhian Mosquera. The centre back has already featured heavily, making an early substitute appearance at Anfield after William Saliba’s injury. He has already shown signs that the Gunners are just as strong with him in the defence—a huge compliment for someone who cost just £13 million.
Then, the Gunners ramped up their spending and brought in star quality. Viktor Gyökeres and Eberechi Eze were the next two players to move to North London for a combined fee of around £117 million. Gyökeres is the man tasked with resolving Arsenal’s goalscoring problems, already netting a brace versus Leeds United. Eze, on the other hand, has been brought in to add quality depth and provide a starting option from the central and left-flank positions.
Many thought that Arsenal had finished their summer business with the signing of Eze, but Andrea Berta had one last trick up his sleeve. The capture of Piero Hincapie on deadline day saw the Gunners acquire an established Bundesliga defender on loan, with an option that is likely to become an obligation to buy. This means that the club will not pay a fee during this window and can therefore afford to bring in a player of Hincapie’s quality.
Major Outgoings
Total income: £9.5 million (values taken from Transfermarkt).
Arsenal were the side with the highest net spend in the Premier League and that is mainly due to the lack of high-value sales by the club. There is a reason the Gunners rank as one of the clubs with the lowest record sales, and that is their inability to sell at the right time.
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However, despite the low figure of £9.5 million in transfer income, Andrea Berta did manage to secure substantial future fees. Jakub Kiwior has a £25 million obligation to buy within his loan move to FC Porto and all of the departures shaved close to £1 million per week off the wage bill.
Players such as Kieran Tierney, Thomas Partey and Takehiro Tomiyasu were allowed to leave the club for nothing when all were still valued at considerable fees. Albert Sambi Lokonga and Fabio Vieira represent failed signings of the Arteta era, but both have made moves to the Bundesliga as they attempt to reignite their careers in the German top-flight.
With most of the deadwood now offloaded, Arsenal can make high-value sales in the future. Most of the core squad would command sizeable fees, so recouping funds should be much simpler in seasons to come.
It is certainly plausible to think that the additions of Martin Zubimendi and Viktor Gyökeres are more pivotal to this Arsenal side than that of Eberechi Eze. Zubimendi resolves an underlying issue in terms of ball speed and dictating the play. Gyökeres is a natural goalscorer, a killer in the 18-yard box.
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However, would Gyökeres function as well with no service? Arsenal fans have already seen the Swedish striker struggle against the likes of Manchester United and Liverpool. His 17 touches against the reigning champions made him the outfield player with the fewest at Anfield.
Eze is different to Ødegaard. He is willing and able to take more risks and be more expressive. Arsenal’s captain is very reliable on the ball, but the Gunners need someone to take more risks to unlock opposition defences. The former Crystal Palace man ranks in the 87th percentile for successful take-ons and in the 83rd percentile for shot-creating actions. This means he is not afraid to beat his man, and his actions lead to him or his teammates taking shots, testing opposition goalkeepers.
The decline of Gabriel Martinelli should mean that Eze occupies the left wing, but he can also play centrally, providing depth if Ødegaard is injured. In both of these positions, Eze should be able to feed Gyokeres, who will be hungry to replicate the numbers he put up at Sporting Lisbon in Portugal.
Would this window have happened without transfer guru Andrea Berta?
There can be no doubt that Andrea Berta has made a significant contribution to the Gunners this summer. Without him, Arsenal may have missed out on some of the signings that now call North London home.
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The decision to sign Hincapie on a loan saved the club money whilst also acquiring a top-class centre-back. The decision to pursue both Gyökeres and Benjamin Sesko before making the Swede the Gunners’ new striker. The decision to hijack Eze from under the noses of rivals Tottenham. All of these decisions have put the club in the strongest position possible to win silverware.
Berta has forged a reputation as Diego Simeone’s transfer chief, helping Atletico Madrid to multiple trophies during his time in Spain. Now he has enhanced this by providing Arsenal with an elite squad.
Some may say it was a smart move by Kroenke Sports and Entertainment to shift the blame to Mikel Arteta if the club fails to win big. After all, he now has the tools to take Arsenal to a new level, so he has few excuses to call upon should he fail to do so. But if the club sticks with Arteta, they have a team that will surely challenge for and win silverware for the next few seasons.
All of this would not have been possible without the signing of Andrea Berta, perhaps the most significant signing of the summer, aside from the addition of new players.
Final Thoughts
The 2025/26 summer transfer window has been a major success. The club strengthened in all of the key areas whilst shifting on players who were deemed surplus to requirements.
With top clubs competing in four competitions and playing in almost 60 matches if they go far in them, a deep squad is a necessity. Arsenal certainly have that in abundance with two or more players in each position.
It could only have been better if the club received fees for players who commanded them, but Berta has seemingly guaranteed the club some remittance next season with the sale of Kiwior and buy options within the Fabio Vieira and Reiss Nelson loans.
Overall, the window receives a grade of A, but that could easily have been an A* if everything had gone in the way of the football club.