Arsenal 2023 summer transfer window preview: Outgoings

Players on the fringes who could use a new home

The main potential outgoings that people will focus on are Xhaka and Tierney, but even if they leave, they won’t be the only ones. I think most Arsenal fans would expect Rob Holding, Nuno Tavares, Nicolas Pepe, Cedric Soares, Ainsley Maitland-Niles and Sambi Lokonga to be wearing a kit other than Arsenal’s come September, and the club will likely be hoping to sell them all rather than loan them out.

We saw a noticeable dip in quality when William Saliba and Takehiro Tomiyasu went down with injuries this season and Holding stepped in. He is a solid defender that could potentially play an important role with another Premier League team, but he doesn’t fit Arsenal’s style of play in that he isn’t great in possession of the ball. I expect Arsenal to look for another RCB to take Holding’s position on the roster, and to sell Holding as a result.

Both Tavares and Pepe had semi-productive loan spells in France this season, each scoring six goals in Ligue 1. It has become pretty clear that they don’t have futures with the club, so I expect Arsenal to try to sell them this summer. Worst case scenario, the club could try to loan them out again in case no deal materializes with the hopes of increasing their transfer values.

Soares, Maitland-Niles and Lokonga are also looking on their way out. All three were sent on loan to other Premier League clubs this season since they didn’t have much of a role with Arsenal. It’s hard to see that changing, so we’re probably looking at a similar deal with these three as we are with the previous two. It should be noted that Soares and Mailand-Niles’ deals both expire this summer (although Soares has a one-year club option), but Lokonga’s deal doesn’t expire until 2026. Because of this, we could see Lokonga loaned out again to try and get him consistent playtime and increase his value. There’s a non-zero chance he could impress enough during this time to get another chance to fight for a spot with Arsenal, but I don’t think it’s very likely.

Look for multiple fringe players to be sold this summer as Arsenal continue to trim the squad.