Arsenal look set for a busy summer, but who will they bring in?
Arsenal have been linked with a host of players, including defenders, wingers and Mesut Ozil replacements.
13 players could leave Arsenal in 4 months
Here we pick 16 to look at.
Defenders
Arsenal are in need of defensive reinforcements in the summer after a number of injuries and poor performances at the back, but which players have been linked with a transfer to North London?
Fernando Calero
- Age: 23
- Position: Centre-Back
- Contract until: 2021
- Club: Real Valladolid
- Estimated transfer value: £7.2m
Arsenal reportedly ‘registered their interest‘ with Real Valladolid for their defender, Fernando Calero, at the start of December.
23-year-old Calero has caught the eye of several top European clubs this season, including the Gunners who have also been attracted by his reported €11m release clause. At this point, however, it should be noted the release clause has not been confirmed. Calero’s current contract runs until 2021.
A centreback who can play left or right, the right-footed Spaniard struggles in the air so that’s something he’d certainly need to work on if he arrived at Arsenal.
Unlike many others we’ve seen play back there for Arsenal over recent times, however, Calero has no issues with his concentration throughout a game. Plus, his ability to position himself in order to block shots is very good.
The player recently visited London, though he claimed afterwards it was just for a holiday, not to complete a transfer. We’ll see if his trip convinced him that he could live in the city permanently.
Gary Cahill
- Age: 33
- Position: Centre-Back
- Contract until: 2019
- Club: Chelsea
- Estimated transfer value: £9m
There were plenty of rumours circulating that Arsenal could be interested in a move for Gary Cahill in January. Unai Emery is running low on centre-back options, what with all the injuries in the back line this season, and the English defender seems to be out of favour at Chelsea. That didn’t happen, but he’s now available for free in the summer.
Maurizio Sarri admitted he wouldn’t stand in Cahill’s way if the defender wanted to move on in January. Speaking to the media ahead of their Europa League game against Vidi , he explained that Cahill wasn’t in his plans for the season as the defender isn’t good enough technically.
That’s not exactly surprising to hear, as Cahill has played just 21 minutes of Premier League football this season. He’s made the Chelsea squad for just six of their 16 league matches, but he has started six of their seven Europa League and League Cup games, captaining the side on each occasion.
The question is whether Unai Emery would be any more comfortable than Sarri signing a defender who isn’t as strong technically. Undoubtedly, Arsenal could use a defender with experience who can strengthen the side without possession.
If that comes at the expense of being able to play out from the back though, it may not be worth it.
Mario Hermoso
- Age: 23
- Position: Centre-back
- Contract until: 2020
- Club: Real Betis
- Estimated transfer value: £18m
Reports from Spain suggested Arsenal were considering paying the €40m release clause for Espanyol defender Mario Hermoso in January. Tis, of course, was nonsense, but his name is still doing the rounds.
Hermoso joined Espanyol from Real Madrid in 2017, having never appeared for Madrid’s first team after coming through their academy. Since then, the 23-year-old has really made a name for himself in La Liga.
Suddenly, there are rumours that Real Madrid want to activate their buy-back clause of €7.5m. However, Arsenal were also very interested, according to a report from Marca.
Hermoso had played every game of Espanyol’s league campaign before January, scoring a couple of goals and helping them keep five clean sheets. It’s no surprise the big clubs are starting to take an interest, and that interest will only increase after the Spaniard made his international debut recently.
Eric Bailly
- Age: 24
- Position: Centre-Back
- Contract until: 2020
- Club: Manchester United
- Estimated transfer value: £27m
Reports in December suggested Jose Mourinho was ‘ready to sell’ Eric Bailly, as the former Manchester United manager looked to free up some space for a replacement centre-back. Sky Sports called the centre-back ‘out of favour’ in Manchester, and said defensive reinforcements might be on Arsenal’s radar.
The Telegraph wrote that Mourinho was ‘prepared to cash in’ on Eric Bailly and Marcos Rojo to bring in a new defender. However, it was never clear whether Manchester United were in favour of the sale or not, and now we’ll have to wait and see if they’re planning to offload him with a new manager in charge.
If Bailly does leave, the Express write that Arsenal have been touted with a move for him. Unai Emery knows the 24-year-old pretty well from his time in Spain, as the Ivory Coast international played for Espanyol and Villarreal whilst Emery was with Sevilla.
With Villarreal, the defender was massively impressive, and a big part of the La Liga side’s fantastic defensive record in 2015/16. For whatever reason, he’s never quite been able to consistently rediscover that form with United. Still so young for a centre-back, perhaps a move would help him get back to his best.
Daniele Rugani
- Age: 24
- Position: Centre-Back
- Contract until: 2021
- Club: Juventus
- Estimated transfer value: £19.8m
Arsenal are ‘seriously monitoring’ the availability of Juventus’ Daniele Rugani, according to reports in the English media.
Express Sport write that Arsenal are following the centre-back closely, though Chelsea are also favourites to move for the 24-year-old. Various reports suggest Rugani would cost between €35m (£31m) and €50m (£44m).
Rugani has a contract with Juventus until 2021, and in the past, he’s chosen to commit his future to the club rather than pushing for a move. His agent admitted over the summer that he’d previously held talks with Arsenal over a transfer, but at the time he insisted the defender was happy with Juventus.
However, the signs suggest that’s starting to change. Rugani has really struggled to get into the Juventus team this season, only making 11 appearances in all competitions. He was also recently tagged in an Instagram post by girlfriend Michela Persico with the two of them learning English.
With a couple of years left on his contract and seemingly no place in Juventus’ first choice team, the summer could be the perfect time for Rugani to move on. Whether that’s to Arsenal, we’ll have to wait and see.
13 players could leave Arsenal in 4 months
After David Ornstein’s claims that Unai Emery and Arsenal are trying to move Mesut Özil on, let’s have a look at some of the players they’ve been linked with in his place for this summer next…
Isco
- Age: 26
- Position: Attacking Midfield
- Club: Real Madrid
- Contract until: 2022
- Estimated market value: £67.5m
Arsenal are reportedly watching the situation of Real Madrid playmaker Isco, as the 26-year-old struggles to start under boss Santiago Solari.
Since Solari took over as manager of the La Liga side, Isco has found himself on the bench or out of the squad completely on a number of occasions.
It’s not as if Real are particularly suffering without him either. After a poor start to the season, they’ve shown some recent improvement under Solari, despite dropping Isco out of the starting eleven. As a result, the rumours of an exit are starting to return.
The Daily Mail write that Arsenal are ‘watching the situation’, and they list the club as one of three Premier League sides the midfielder could end up joining. The other two are Chelsea and Manchester City, so it’s fair to say there’s competition.
The Mail also go on to point out that although Isco has played under Emery before, at Valencia, the two didn’t necessarily always see eye-to-eye. The Real Madrid man felt he deserved more first-team game time, after making most of his appearances for the Valencia B team in 2009/10 and 2010/11. He then left for Malaga in 2011.
Nonetheless, Emery did give the playmaker his senior debut, so there are positives and negatives to the story. Perhaps the Arsenal head coach could rekindle the relationship now that Isco is an established player.
Pablo Fornals
- Age: 22
- Position: Attacking Midfield
- Club: Villarreal
- Contract until: 2022
- Estimated market value: £22.5m
Arsenal are reportedly considering a £17.8m move for Pablo Fornals as links with the player surface again.
Arsenal have been linked with Villarreal’s Pablo Fornals for some time now. In fact, he was once named as a possible Santi Cazorla replacement long before we even knew Santi would be leaving.
The midfielder has a £17.8m release clause according to this latest report and that has caught the attention of Arsenal who are said to be prepared to meet it.
An established first-team regular with Malaga before paying his own release clause of £10m to join Villarreal in 2017, Fornals has four goals and four assists this season in 35 games.
An attacking midfielder with a strong shot from distance, who is able to hold onto the ball well and loves a tackle, Fornals currently wears the number 8 for Villarreal.
Houssem Aouar
- Age: 20
- Position: Central Midfield
- Club: Olympique Lyonnais
- Contract until: 2023
- Estimated market value: £36m
Arsenal are also tracking Olympique Lyonnais star Houssem Aouar, according to reports.
The Daily Mail write that Arsenal have been scouting Aouar for the last 18 months, and they consider him someone who could replace Aaron Ramsey in North London, but the same could be true of Mesut Özil. The Lyon midfielder’s performances in this season’s Champions League have reportedly particularly caught Unai Emery’s eye.
The Week write that Aouar is ‘near the top’ of Emery’s list of players to sign. Although Chelsea were initially planning to rival Arsenal for the 20-year-old’s signature, they since turned their attention to Borussia Dortmund’s Christian Pulisic instead.
Aouar has six goals and five assists in 34 appearances for Lyon this season. He’s mostly playing in central midfield but has also spent some time on the left.
The youngster has also scored in both of his most recent u21 appearances for France. There were rumours that he might get a senior call-up before he picked up a knock immediately before the current international break.
A strong passer who contributes well defensively and counter-attacks impressively, Aouar could fit well in Emery’s side. We’ll see if Arsenal decide to move for him in the next couple of windows.
Yannick Carrasco
- Age: 25
- Position: Left Winger
- Club: DL Yifang
- Contract until: 2021
- Estimated market value: £18m
Carrasco is a winger, rather than a number 10 like Özil, but that might actually help him fit better in Unai Emery’s system. Either way, he would replace some of the creativity Arsenal would lose without the German. Carrasco notched 16 assists in 54 games for Atletico Madrid and Dalian Yifang in the last season and a half, as well as 11 goals.
Sky Sports pundit and Belgian football expert Kristof Terreur spoke to the Transfer Talk Podcast and admitted that the 25-year-old has been offered to Arsenal. He added that it was difficult for Arsenal to finance such a move in January, but didn’t rule out the possibility of a summer transfer, confirming that the club are looking for a winger.
Some other recent reports went even further. There have been claims that Arsenal are in ‘advanced talks’ to sign the winger, with his wife suggesting clubs like the Gunners and Manchester United are ‘very interested’. Rumours in January suggested Arsenal had held a ‘successful meeting’ with Carrasco’s agent.
Ruben Neves
- Age: 21
- Position: Defensive Midfield
- Club: Wolves
- Contract until: 2023
- Estimated market value: £36m
Arsenal and Manchester City are interested in Wolverhampton Wanderers midfielder Ruben Neves, who prefers to stay in the Premier League than move abroad, according to reports in Portugal.
Neves certainly wouldn’t be a direct replacement for Mesut Özil, playing a much more defensive role, but perhaps that could hint at a change in style under Unai Emery. He’s already trialled a couple of teams without the use of a traditional number 10, for example in the 5-1 win against Fulham.
The Neves story actually started in Italy, with Tuttosport (via Sport Witness) reporting that Juventus had met with Jeorge Mendes over a possible move for the Wolves man. However, Portuguese outlet Record then took over, claiming Neves would rather stay in the Premier League, where he’s already wanted by Arsenal and Manchester City.
Neves has been a crucial part of Wolves’ success over the last season and a half. After leaving Porto for the then Championship side, the midfielder helped his new team on an impressive promotion push. Since then, he’s been just as effective in the Premier League.
The 21-year-old is a very well rounded midfielder. He can pass, he has a deadly long-shot, he can take free kicks, and he’s also good at winning the ball back and staying focused out of possession.
Playing a more defensive position in the Wolves side, Neves perhaps doesn’t get involved in the goals as much as other midfielders. That’s not really his job though. Nonetheless, he has scored a few goals this season, including one against Spurs and one against Liverpool.
13 players could leave Arsenal in 4 months
Arsenal are reportedly the only club to make an offer for Cengiz Under despite the player being linked with a number of clubs, but he’s not the only winger they’ve been linked with as you can read next.
Under offer?
Arsenal have been linked with a move for Under for some time now and although a host of other clubs are also said to be interested in him, only Arsenal have made a concrete offer – €30m that was rejected last summer.
Roma are believed to be open to selling their young star, however, a bid in the region of €40m is likely to be required and that might be a bit rich for Arsenal.
With the January transfer window now closed, Arsenal are still in need of a winger, so let’s have a look at the six players reportedly on their shortlist, starting with Under himself…
Cengiz Under
- Age: 21
- Position: Right Winger
- Contract until: 2022
- Club: AS Roma
- Estimated transfer value: £24.3m
Under has made a great start to the season, scoring six goals and assisting nine in 25 appearances. There have been multiple conflicting reports about Arsenal lodging bids for the player in the last few months, so it’s hard to know the truth of the matter. It definitely seems like there is at least some interest from the Gunners though.
Another recent report from ESPN suggested that Under would be keen on a Premier League transfer when he leaves Roma. Arsenal aren’t the only club mentioned in their story though, with Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur linked. Plus, they think the 21-year-old would be against a January move as it stands.
As mentioned in previous reports on Under, Roma are looking to get the player tied down to a new contract. The Serie A side want to include a buyout clause in the deal worth around £40-50m.
That wouldn’t put the Turkish international completely out of Arsenal’s price range, considering the club have spent more than £40m on the likes of Mesut Özil, Alexandre Lacazette and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang recently. Perhaps the Gunners could look to sign him as soon as possible before the Italians get him tied down though. We’ll see.
Callum Hudson-Odoi
- Age: 18
- Position: Left Winger
- Contract until: 2020
- Club: Chelsea
One of the latest wingers to be linked with a move to Arsenal is young Chelsea star Hudson-Odoi. A report from The S*n claims the Gunners have ‘expressed interest’ in the winger, who is reportedly stalling on a contract extension because he’s not getting enough first-team opportunities.
Chelsea are notoriously poor at integrating their talented youth products into their senior teams, and Hudson-Odoi is no exception to this. Arsenal fans have seen first hand how impressive the winger can be at his best, from his masterclass in last season’s FA Youth Cup final, to his strong performance against the Arsenal senior side in pre-season.
Nonetheless, since the Community Shield in August, he’s only played 644 minutes of senior football. Clearly, Chelsea is not the place to be for Hudson-Odoi to take the next step.
At youth level, the winger has one goal and two assists in five Premier League 2 matches, including one against Arsenal. It certainly wouldn’t be surprising if the Gunners took advantage of the contract dispute and made a move for him.
Nicolas Pepe
- Age: 23
- Position: Right Winger
- Contract until: 2022
- Club: LOSC Lille
- Estimated transfer value: £22.5m
The media have linked Pepe to Arsenal pretty heavily in recent weeks and months. Those links have only got stronger since the season got underway, with the winger scoring 17 goals, providing 11 assists and winning multiple penalties for his side as well in 28 appearances so far.
With Danny Welbeck’s injury, Arsenal are reportedly being forced to ‘rethink’ their transfer plans, and they could move for Pepe sooner rather than later. The player himself recently admitted it was ‘good’ to be linked to the likes of the Gunners, Bayern and Dortmund.
The spanner in the works is that Pepe’s incredible start to the season has made his club very hesitant to sell. Lille president Gerard Lopez and vice-president Marc Ingla have both spoken publicly to say that, in principle, they don’t want to sell before the summer.
Malcom
- Age: 21
- Position: Right Winger
- Contract until: 2023
- Club: FC Barcelona
- Estimated transfer value: £40.5m
It’s been difficult to write an article about Arsenal-linked wingers in the last year without mentioning Malcom at some stage.
Last January, when Malcom was still playing for Bordeaux, the media heavily linked both Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur to the Brazilian. Then in the summer, the same links reappeared again, but the player ended up moving to FC Barcelona instead.
You’d think that would be the end of it, but Malcom’s limited game time since his move means that’s not the case.
After playing just 25 minutes of football by late October, Barcelona chief executive Oscar Grau was reportedly under the impression that the player would be sold. There were also stories in the Spanish media suggesting the 21-year-old had already requested a transfer assuming his game time wouldn’t improve.
However, the winger did then get into the Barcelona team, making a start in the cup and scoring in a brief Champions League appearance. Unfortunately, that was followed by an early substitution after just 57 minutes in his first league start, whilst 2-0 down to Real Betis.
We’ll have to wait and see if that damages his future chances at the club. If it does, it seems like Arsenal will be waiting.
Ismaila Sarr
- Age: 20
- Position: Left Winger
- Contract until: 2021
- Club: Stade Rennais
- Estimated transfer value: £12.6m
Sarr is listed as a left winger on Transfermarkt, but he’s played all over the front line for Stade Rennais this season. From centre-forward to left-wing, right-wing, left-midfield and right-midfield. He’s scored in each of those positions as well, bar left-midfield, so he’s clearly able to adapt well to what the team needs from him.
Overall, Sarr has nine goals and nine assists in 34 league appearances for a bottom half Ligue 1 side, which is not a bad record at all. No wonder a report from Mirror Football at the end of last year suggested Sven Mislintat already has the winger in his sights.
The 20-year-old Senegal star impressed in Russia during the summer’s World Cup and, as a result, has brought the scouts of some of the world’s biggest clubs to his door. In addition to Arsenal, Inter Milan are also said to be interested in the player.
Sarr’s strengths are his dribbling and through balls, and he wins a lot of free-kicks for his side, which is the kind of winger Arsenal could do with. He’s a bit younger and a bit cheaper than some of the alternatives on this list, so he could be a more realistic option this January.
Nana Ampomah
- Age: 23
- Position: Left Winger
- Contract until: 2021
- Club: Waasland-Beveren
- Estimated transfer value: £1.35m
Ampomah plays for Waasland-Beveren in the Belgian Pro League, so he’s probably not a player you’ve heard much about before.
The 23-year-old has made a great start to the season though, with seven goals and six assists in 22 matches, including against the big names in the country like an assist against Club Brugge and a brace against league-leaders Genk.
The winger recently revealed his desire to play for Arsenal, telling the media he likes the Gunners for their “style of playing” and followed the club growing up as a child. He said it would be “a dream come true” to join Arsenal.
Over the summer, Ampomah was even called up for his country, Ghana, as he continues his individual progress. It would still be a bit of a jump for Ampomah to get a transfer to Arsenal after one good run of form, but we’ll see what Arsenal’s scouting team make of him.