Arsenal: 4 vital transfers to facilitate final window spending

Before the window opened, and in fact quite some time before, what featured on the summer transfer window docket read something resembling ‘a lot’. The outrageous amount of work for Arsenal to undertake couldn’t be circumvented.

Cursed with an obscene amount of deadwood and overpaid mediocrity, without even factoring the requisite injection of quality there were a wealth of sales to sanction.

So far, that aspect of the window can’t come close to being labelled as a success. A few loan moves with obligations have been added to with the permanent £25m departure of Joe Willock, and with that sale new doors have opened.

Martin Odegaard’s imminent arrival for a fee in and around £30m-£35m ensures Willock’s sale is painted in an even brighter light. It’s a move that if incorporating the 21-year-old will cost Arsenal between £5-£10m depending on add-ons. That’s great business.

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4 transfers Arsenal need to make to facilitate Mikel Arteta’s final part of the Gunners’ proposed summer window spending spree

With £75m already parted with on Nuno Tavares, Albert Sambi Lokonga and Ben White, securing that elusive creative midfielder, one at an excellent age with the talent and development potential to pop in the Premier League, constitutes fine work.

Aaron Ramsdale will follow suit to jump up the net spend, meaning five new faces will have walked through the Emirates Stadium doors as part of the previously labelled ‘unprecedented’ summer window.

Is this the ‘ruthless overhaul’ laid down before us? You’d argue not. The total outlay will exceed £130m and looking at the first team, only two of the additions will start in a fully fit squad: White is a mainstay in defence and Odegaard joins the frontline.

Easily observed are the issues that still remain at right-back and at centre-forward. The latter would, ideally, be left untended to were Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to rediscover his 2019/20 form. Odegaard’s arrival could springboard that but growing concerns are tough to shirk. As for Alexandre Lacazette, he’s never been an elite goalscorer in red and white.

The right-back department, meanwhile, consists of three defenders, none of whom are going to elevate this team into European hopefuls. However, none of those two positions will be attacked with any vigour unless these departures occur to facilitate them. This is the next job.

So what needs to happen?

Continued…