Arsenal almost certainly won’t be able to sell Takehiro Tomiyasu this summer, but they were reportedly considering it before his latest injury setback.
Sami Mokbel reports for the Daily Mail that Arsenal will look to sell a number of players in the summer to offset their plans for incomings, and the Gunners were planning to see how Takehiro Tomiyasu returned from his last injury before deciding whether he’d be among those sold.
But Tomiyasu’s subsequent knee surgery has thrown a spanner in the works, likely ruling out a summer move for the player. The right-back won’t be back fit until towards the end of 2025 on current estimates.
Mokbel reports that Kieran Tierney and Oleksandr Zinchenko are expected to leave this summer, so Arsenal may have decided to keep Tomiyasu anyway. At this point, they have no choice.
The report also adds that Arsenal could be at risk of losing Tomiyasu for nothing once he’s fit, as his current deal expires in 2026.
If the defender doesn’t extend, he could speak to foreign clubs about a free transfer from next January.
But that risk is perhaps somewhat overblown by the Daily Mail report, as Tomiyasu has an option to extend to 2027 in his contract. If Arsenal want to keep him or secure a transfer fee for him, they need only activate that option.
Whether Tomiyasu ends up staying at Arsenal, sold to another club, or leaving on a free transfer, it seems no decision will be made this summer.
The Japan international’s focus will just be on getting fit again, so he can play more than the six minutes of football he managed in 2024/25.