Arsenal: 4 Players Who Could Leave Gunners in January

Here are 3 Arsenal players who could leave the Emirates Stadium in January.

As the issues mount and the internal solutions diminish, Arsenal are facing two of the most crucial transfer windows in their history.

Edu Gaspar and Mikel Arteta are under no illusions at the size of the squad rebuild facing them, as with each passing week the senior figures at the club continue to underwhelm in the shadows of the less experienced troupe.

Believing all will be amended in one COVID-19 affected tricky January window is universally accepted as impossible, a case made harder by a lack of finance, and the perilous position Arsenal find themselves in doing no favours in their efforts to convince players to move to north London.

Whatever the next course of action is, and whether arrivals will be forthcoming, progress can’t go ahead without players being shown through the exit door to free up squad space and lessen the wage bill.

Arsenal failed to sell the stars they wanted to in the summer which strongly suggests that January will be no easier, but there are some players who could be shipped out in just a few weeks’ time.

William Saliba

Contrary to reports, Arsenal will flat out refuse to sell their £27m centre-back either in January or in the near future. Yet to play a single minute of senior football, or even make any Europa League or Premier League squads, the speculation suggesting that Arsenal will cut their losses on William Saliba have been labelled wide of the mark.

Furthermore, there is confidence within the camp that he will be a future star for Arteta in the coming years, although no appearances are expected between now and the end of the season.

As per The Athletic, it is a shared view among the Frenchman and staff that he needs to leave on loan in January to earn regular senior minutes, with a six-month loan deal to a UK-based side expected.

Wherever he goes, it must be in England. Ideally, there will be Premier League interest, although the likelihood is that dropping down a tier will occur. If that’s the case, training ground neighbours Watford pose a solid option, as do west Londoners Brentford.

This will be less about money – Saliba earns around £40k-per-week – and solely focussed on getting the 19-year-old up to speed with the rhythm of English football.

Sokratis Papastathopoulos

A well-liked figure within the club, Sokratis Papastathopoulos’ omission from the Premier League and Europa League squads has been claimed to have caused tension within the dressing room.

Players are not overly keen with the treatment of the Greek defender, although on ability alone, it’s a decision that was somewhat inevitable. At 32 years old, Sokratis has gradually drifted away from the first team with a series of below-par outings, and despite being a model professional (he hasn’t spoken out once) the decision was the right call.

However, it was a call that shouldn’t have been made in the first place.

Clearly not in the manager’s thoughts for the current campaign, why no deal was found over the summer was another failure on the recruitment side. Sitting on £92k-per-week wages, his near £5m-per-year salary would have been a substantial one to get off the wage bill, instead Arsenal dug their heels in and demanded a hefty fee for someone with just one year left on his deal.

Not playing any minutes other than for the Under-23’s, his value will drop with every matchday squad exemption, not to mention come January he’ll have just six months left to run on his deal.

Selling Mesut Ozil will be high on the club’s list of priorities, although realistically Sokratis’ departure is one they’ll pursue more vigorously in January – Juventus were remarkably linked. Good luck with that one.

Lucas Torreira

A move in the offing throughout the summer window, in whatever capacity, Lucas Torreira was not expected to remain an north London beyond the summer.

Talk of bids from Italy and Spain were ever-present, yet the financial impact of COVID-19, and likely overambitious demands, culminated in the Uruguayan only leaving Arsenal on loan.

Atletico Madrid won the race and in terms of player profile matching a club, it appeared to be a perfect fit. However, despite starting on the opening La Liga weekend in a 2-0, that has been his only full 90 minute appearance, with his nine outings in all competitions accumulating to a meagre 213 minutes.

The deal included no buy option but it was felt that Torreira had the quality to stake a claim in Los Rojiblancos’ team long-term, which hasn’t materialised. Now, as per TuttoMercatoWeb, he’s set to return to Arsenal in January where the club will reassess his position, ideally with the intention of selling him permanently.

Diego Simeone will allow him to bring his disappointing spell to an abrupt end, with Torino among the sides interested in securing his signature. They were among the parties chasing his signature in the summer, but the pull of Champions League football proved too alluring.

A return to Serie A, and alongside his former manager Marco Giampaolo, appears most likely, although any hopes of accruing close to the £26m they paid Sampdoria back in 2018 can be forgotten about.

On the flip side, these claims are being refuted by Matteo Moretto, who has ties to Atletico. If they’re to be believed, then Simeone is happy having Torreira as a five-minute end-of-the-game type substitute for the whole season. Arsenal and the midfielder will feel otherwise.

Granit Xhaka

This would be a dramatic turn of events.

Granit Xhaka, handed a lifeline by Arteta upon his appointment after his infamous outburst against Crystal Palace, had managed to claw his way back into the senior fold and become an integral part of Arsenal’s early improvements under Arteta.

Linked with a move to Hertha Berlin in the previous January window, he was convinced to stay by the Spaniard who showed loyalty to the midfielder with his regular inclusions in the Premier League. Deemed such an important figure, he’s one of a few whose spot in the team never feels under threat.

Mediocre form – at best – would argue otherwise, and a ludicrously stupid red card in the most recent loss to Burnley has finally opened Arteta’s eyes.

The Daily Mail’s Sami Mokbel states that Arsenal are open to offers for the 28-year-old in the coming window. Not a declaration of wanting him out specifically, the stance doesn’t alter too much, only that if a bid decent enough bid came in, they’d think about it. The same could be said for most players.

However, after coming so close to leaving last winter, Xhaka may feel his time is up in north London. As Arsenal sink he may want to abandon ship, a decision that could help keep us a afloat in the end.

One to watch.