Arsenal: 3 players missed out on in summer transfer window

Arsenal are working tirelessly to improve their squad this summer, even if some will be enjoying some time abroad about now, and the amount of drama that has unfolded even before the transfer window opens is quite remarkable.

It’s always a testing time. Fed stories left, right centre with varying degrees of legitimacy, the off-season truly tests the fans’ emotional resolve. Utter dejection can turn to unbridled joy in an instant.

There are well over 12 weeks to go until final assessments on Mikel Arteta’s transfer business can be made, although the early signs aren’t overly positive as the window prepares to open on June 9.

Across the team Arsenal are looking for reinforcements. The amount of names being linked with a move to the Emirates continues to climb, just as the list of targets slowly gets whittled down. In many cases, the latter point isn’t a positive one.

Arsenal: 3 players missed out on in summer transfer window after Emi Buendia snubs Gunners for Aston Villa

One player the Gunners have already missed out on is Emi Buendia. The Argentine playmaker was offered the same personal terms as Aston Villa had provided, but made his decision based on the pathway into the first team he would be offered under Dean Smith. He informed Edu of his decision on Friday, reports the Independent.

It’s done now. Case closed. Move on.

But will Arsenal suffer more heartbreak? Another notable individual who seems to have slipped through their grasp is Ryan Bertrand. On the pursuit of a backup left-back for Kieran Tierney, the former Southampton (and Chelsea) defender was seen as the ideal stopgap option to fill in that role, one who would arrive on a free transfer and suit the homegrown quota.

The Athletic reveal has since been swayed by Leicester and European football, something to entice him as he enters the twilight of his career. That one is no huge miss. Long-term contracts for players over 30 has to stop.

Finding a left-back to fit the criteria is extremely difficult. Josh Doig can be thrown into the equation as he no longer looks north London bound, largely in part, one can imagine, to the role he’d play.

Anyone coming in will be well aware that Kieran Tierney won’t be usurped, thus finding the right quality who will accept a slower start to life at the club as understudy is no easy feat. It’s a very hard profile to source and a tough sell.

The latest added to the list will come as a blow to some and not to others, with the fanbase split on what is actually needed this summer with some departments looking well stocked.

Continued…