2 former Arsenal players who are surprising free agents

They say "once a Gunner, always a Gunner". Unfortunately, this saying only extends so far. Arsenal is not a charity and they cannot welcome back every former player with open arms, as much as it would be great to do so.

2 former Arsenal players who are surprising free agents

Currently, there are two former Arsenal players who are free agents:

• Shkodran Mustafi
• Gervinho

Shkodran Mustafi

The Germany international Shkodran Mustafi has been a free agent since he was released from Levante last summer. Almost a full season without finding a club, it is quite sad to see from Arsenal's perspective.

Look, Arsenal fans won't look back on Shkodran Mustafi's time at the club with any joy. Frankly, he was a woeful defender who never justified his price tag. Recently on Pain in the Arsenal, we dubbed Mustafi in the top 3 worst Arsenal transfers of all-time, so we won't claim that Mustafi should rejoin Arsenal anytime soon.

However, if he still wishes to play football, then we hope he finds a new club soon. After all, Mustafi is a likeable guy and even if it didn't work out for him, he never bad-mouthed the club after leaving.

Gervinho

Gervinho is retired from international football, but not club football. However, it is a ticking time-bomb, given the fact that the former Arsenal man ages at 36-years-old and has been without a club since the summer.

Gervinho last played for Greek side Aris, only spending a season there. He is a notorious winger who is mostly remembered for his time with Lille, Arsenal and Roma. He represented Arsenal from 2011-2013, so not a long stint.

It's safe to say that Arsenal will not have a place for Gervinho to re-join. The former Ivorian international always had a way with words but in 2013 he famously said that he now "hates Arsenal".