Who should Arsenal sell before the close of the window?

Who should Arsenal sell before the close of the window?

By Jonny Bray

One of the fairest criticisms thrown at Arsenal over the last decade is that, too often, the club pays over the odds for average players and then struggles to sell them.

Not only is this a waste of money, but it creates a toxic environment at the club and limits the options of managers who may be stuck with a Shkodran Mustafi or a Sead Kolašinac in their squad.

Those millions could be reinvested elsewhere, and for too long, Arsenal have allowed players to take advantage of our desperation to return to the top and our poor recruitment strategy.

For that reason, it's time to look at the Arsenal squad and see which players need selling immediately.

 

Hector Bellerin 

 

If reports are to be believed, Hector Bellerin earns more than Dele Alli and Hugo Lloris at Spurs.

I mean no disrespect to Bellerin when I say this, but that is ridiculous.

Bellerin is a great character.

I personally like his social media presence, how he dresses, and his environmental work.

However, on the pitch, he has never been much better than average.

There was a point where some Arsenal fans suggested he was as good or better than Chelsea's Cesar Azpilicueta, which is ridiculous.

Instead, Bellerin is a very average player who would maybe carve a decent career for himself at a club like Brighton or Norwich.

Bellerin really doesn't excel in any area other than his pace.

He's reportedly currently Arsenal's seventh-highest earner with a weekly wage of £110,000.

With an Aaron Wan-Bissaka, you have the clear advantage of having a defensively superb right-back, and with a Trent Alexander-Arnold, you have the benefit of a ball-playing right-back who can cross better than most right-wingers. 

With Bellerin, you have nothing, no clear advantage, and no real excitement.

Letting him go is what is best for him and for the club.

Once again, though, it will be challenging to sell a player on such high wages when they have no assurance they'll get that money elsewhere.

Lucas Torreira 

 

Another player who is on high wages but not making enough appearances in the first team is Lucas Torreira.

After arriving to praise and fanfare, the Uruguayan fell off a cliff and never truly recovered his spot in the Arsenal starting 11.

He reportedly currently earns £75,000 a week.

He's coming off the back of a distinctly average loan spell at Atletico Madrid, however, he also is one of the few fringe players at Arsenal who could still command a significant transfer fee.

He is highly rated by many, particularly in Serie A, and could offer a team in Europe a good option.

Once again, Torreira is an example of an Arsenal transfer strategy that fails to bring in the top players and then often overpays for underdeveloped talent.

You could argue that, despite having what It takes to become good players, Aaron Ramsdale and Ben White suffer from that same trait.

Cedric Soares 

 

Arsenal responded to having one overrated right back by signing an overrated right back to replace him.

There was a time where Cedric was held in high regard, but that was years before Arsenal finally got round to making their move for the defender.

He had another poor game against Chelsea on Saturday, showing that he is also not up to the standard that Arsenal will need to meet if they are to challenge at the top of the Premier League once again. 

With wages reportedly in the region of £75,000 a week. Cedric is another high earner at the club, but does he really offer anything?

In comparison, Liverpool currently pays Joe Gomez the same amount, and he has been one of England's best young prospects at centre-back for three seasons.

Conclusion

 

A fair few players could have made this list.

It's nothing against the players personally, but with the club's best interest at heart, these individuals need to leave.

The issue is made all the more baffling because players such as Bukayo Saka, who has carried Arsenal for the best part of 18 months, appear so far down the list.

It's a condemnation of the club's recruitment over the last five years that so many of its most experienced and well-paid professionals are offering so little to the team's performance.