There is something inherently reckless about making transfer predictions nine months before the summer window opens, but [Arsenal](https://youaremyarsenal.com/arsenal-2025-transfer-window-review/) invite this sort of speculation. The club have just closed one of their most expensive windows in history, with Viktor Gyökeres arriving to lead the line, Eberechi Eze and Noni Madueke boosting attacking depth, Martin Zubimendi anchoring midfield, Cristhian Mosquera and Christian Nørgaard filling key depth roles, Kepa Arrizabalaga offering competition in goal, and Piero Hincapié joining on loan with an option to buy. That outlay, north of £250 million, has transformed the squad but not eliminated all questions.
The start of the 2025–26 season has shown both promise and fragility. Arsenal look equipped to challenge again, but injuries to Bukayo Saka remind everyone how thin the margins are at the very top. Financial Fair Play is an ongoing backdrop, and with [Andrea Berta](https://youaremyarsenal.com/andrea-berta-arsenal-overhaul/) now steering the sporting direction, every decision will carry both football and financial weight. That combination makes predicting next summer a strange mix of comedy and credibility. Arsenal are famous for their transfer sagas, the rumours that stretch into absurdity, and the late moves that nobody saw coming. Which makes this the perfect time to sketch out a way-too-early look at 2026: half banter, half serious, with the understanding that reality will probably outdo both.
### **The Banter Window**
**Stockpile the Left-Backs Again**
Zinchenko and Kiwior are out on loans, Tomiyasu has gone, and Calafiori plus Hincapié are the current solutions. The sensible approach would be to trust those two. The banter prediction? Arsenal panic by adding two more left-backs, just in case. One is quickly reinvented as an inverted midfielder, the other makes a handful of cup appearances before being spotted in the background of a training video and nowhere else. It would be the latest entry in Arsenal’s long-running tradition of overthinking full-back coverage.
**Chelsea Cast-Offs Round Three**
This is now heritage. After Madueke and Kepa, the next logical step is raiding Stamford Bridge again. There is always a highly rated Cobham graduate who cannot get a game under Chelsea’s 34-man squad policy. Arsenal scoop one up, pay a hefty fee, and then the player becomes the centrepiece of a League Cup tie against Brentford. Arsenal fans joke, Chelsea fans groan, and the cycle repeats.
**Loan Today, Paybits Tomorrow**
The Hincapié model—loan now, decide later—fits the modern Arsenal playbook. Imagine a whole summer built this way: every player announced as a loan with obligations tied to appearances, goals, or whether the sun shines in Islington. Financial Fair Play headaches are kicked into 2027, and by the time the clauses trigger, nobody remembers the details. It is peak Arsenal pragmatism disguised as creative genius.
**Gabriel Brand Overload**
The Gabriels already dominate the squad list: Jesus, Magalhães, Martinelli. Add one more and the marketing department could launch “Gabriels United” as a merchandise line. Shirts, mugs, scarves, even special-edition NFTs that nobody asked for. The joke prediction is Arsenal signing a Championship striker named Gabriel purely to complete the set. It would make little tactical sense, but the memes would be immaculate.
**Striker Rumour Mill: Burnt Out**
Gyökeres has been signed, finally filling the long-debated centre-forward hole. Yet the rumour mill will not stop. Arsenal will still be linked with Osimhen, Vlahović, and any teenager who scores twice in a youth tournament. Expect headlines suggesting “Arsenal monitoring” twenty different No. 9s, none of whom arrive. The fun lies in the theatre of being connected to everyone, then ending up with exactly nobody.
**ITKs Gone Wild**
Forget scouting reports, the real summer entertainment comes from “ITKs” on social media. Every week a new account pops up claiming Arsenal are hours away from hijacking a Real Madrid deal or secretly meeting a striker’s uncle in Dubai. None of it comes true, but the likes and retweets pile up faster than Reiss Nelson’s loan spells. By August, fans are addicted to refreshing timelines even though we all know the only thing coming “here we go” is disappointment.
### **Where It Gets Real**
**The Gyökeres Equation**
For the first time in years, Arsenal have a true reference point at striker. Gyökeres is powerful, direct, and capable of scoring across competitions. The serious question is whether he delivers enough in year one to convince the club that the role is solved long term. If he scores 20-plus and performs in Europe, Arsenal will focus elsewhere. If his form dips or injuries intervene, a complementary forward—more rotational than marquee—becomes a 2026 priority.
**Martinelli’s Contract Pressure**
Gabriel Martinelli signed through 2027, but that contract length makes 2026 a decision year. Either he solidifies himself as a consistent producer on the left, or Arsenal consider cashing in while his value remains high. With Eze offering flexibility across wing and midfield, Martinelli has to step up to stay untouchable. A strong campaign means security; another patchy season makes him a logical candidate to fund future business.
**LB Strategy: Build or Trust?**
Calafiori and Hincapié provide cover, but the structure of the squad will force a choice. Do Arsenal trust two hybrid profiles to carry a full season, or do they buy a natural, orthodox left-back to balance things? The sensible move is to see how Calafiori settles across the year and whether Hincapié’s loan is made permanent. If both excel, money can be redirected elsewhere. If not, the club could shop for a specialist in 2026.
**Activate Hincapié Option or Not**
The £45 million option attached to Hincapié’s loan is one of the biggest decisions looming. If he adapts quickly and offers consistency both as a left-back and a centre-back, Arsenal will likely trigger the clause early to avoid competition. If his impact is mixed, they may hesitate, risking another year of patchwork depth. The call will define whether Arsenal finally settle the left-sided defensive rotation or keep searching.
**Gabriel Jesus’ Future**
With Gyökeres now the primary striker and attacking depth widened through Eze and Madueke, Gabriel Jesus faces a reduced role. His versatility remains useful, but recurring injuries and the possibility of interest from Brazil open the door to an exit. Arsenal may see 2026 as the right time to offload him, freeing wages and creating space for a younger forward. His legacy would be valued, but his pathway increasingly blocked.
**Registering Smart Squad Depth**
This summer brought in several players who tick homegrown or registration boxes. That gives Arsenal more flexibility for 2026 when UEFA and Premier League squad quotas again come into focus. The smart move will be once again loaning fringe players, while leaving slots open for one or two targeted foreign signings. It is not glamorous business, but squad management of this type often separates those who can sustain a challenge from those who cannot.
**Saliba Security First**
William Saliba is the foundation of Arsenal’s defense, and although Mosquera has joined to add depth, there is no genuine replacement if the Frenchman departs. Timber and White cover roles across the back line, but none carry Saliba’s mix of composure and physicality. With Real Madrid circling, the real priority before the 2026 window is tying him to a new long-term deal. Without that assurance, every other defensive plan becomes secondary.
Predicting Arsenal transfers this far out is part comedy, part analysis, and part therapy. The banter side reflects the absurdity of the rumour mill—stockpiling left-backs, raiding Chelsea’s rejects, and signing yet another Gabriel for symmetry. The serious side is sharper: monitoring Gyökeres’ impact, deciding on Hincapié, re-evaluating Martinelli, and, most of all, locking down Saliba before Madrid or anyone else can test Arsenal’s resolve. The overlap between fantasy and reality is what makes every Arsenal summer so addictive. By the time 2026 arrives, the truth will almost certainly be stranger than the predictions, but the one certainty is that Arsenal cannot afford to let their defensive cornerstone walk into uncertainty.