Arsenal have already reportedly picked out two players to axe as part of a ‘summer fire sale’, while TEAMtalk understands they have identified a replacement.
The Gunners‘ transfer business over recent windows laid the groundwork for Mikel Arteta’s side to dominate in the Premier League and Europe this season, with a further £250m spent last summer to arguably complete their stacked squad.
This leaves Arsenal second in the five-year Premier League net spend table, with the north London side only a mere £9m adrift of leaders Manchester United.
With this immense spending, at some point, something was going to give, and Arsenal would need to balance the books to avoid Financial Fair Play and/or Profit and Sustainability sanctions.
And this process is well underway, with Football Insider reporting that Ben White and Gabriel Jesus have been chosen to be ‘part of a summer fire sale’ at Arsenal, who are ‘set to offload’ these players and they are ‘unlikely to stop at just those two’.
Want more breaking transfer lines from original sources? Add TEAMtalk as a preferred source on Googleto your favourites list for news you can trust.
Arsenal’s ‘significant’ interest in a replacement revealed
White and Jesus have been important players under Arteta in previous seasons, but it is hardly surprising that they have reportedly been picked to be sold in the summer.
They are very good players, but they have also been left behind as Arsenal have reached new heights under Arteta, with Jurrien Timber, Kai Havertz and Viktor Gyokeres brought in as upgrades.
And we have already reported on White being a prime candidate to leave Arsenal, with our sources revealing on March 21 that club chiefs have approved his departure.
Arsenal are also planning to reinvest the money they make from selling White, with the club holding a ‘significant’ interest in AS Roma standout Wesley following his breakout campaign.
White was heavily linked with Everton in January, but ex-Chelsea winger Shaun Wright-Phillips has explained why he could see him moving to Stamford Bridge.
Wright-Phillps told BestBettingSites: “I think I could see a move for Ben White to Chelsea take place in the summer. It makes sense, it’s possible. I feel quite sorry for Ben because he had an injury, and he was playing so well for Arsenal. He was unbelievable.
“Then he came back and he’d lost his place to Jurrien Timber, who’s the best right-back in the Premier League. It’s going to take something special to unseat him now.
“I don’t think Arsenal would be willing to sell him in the winter window though, because that squad depth is one of Arsenal’s biggest advantages.
“If Timber is injured, White is the man to come in. So selling him would force Arsenal back in the market and I don’t think that’s something they would want to do while they are challenging for the title, and maybe the Champions League.”
Latest Arsenal news: Real Madrid raid on as Gunners ‘finalise’ transfer
Arsenal are also said to have opened the door for another fringe player to leave, though he could secure an upward move to Real Madrid.
Elsewhere, the Gunners are reportedly working on signings and it has even been claimed that they are ‘finalising’ a move for Atletico Madrid standout Julian Alvarez.
There is also good news for Arsenal regarding their pursuit of Newcastle United’s Sandro Tonali, with another potential transfer ruled out.