Six players Arsenal should sell this summer

Nicolas Pepe

Six players Arsenal should sell this summer

By Will Castle

Arsenal haven’t been short of activity in the transfer market this summer, with Mikel Arteta so far acquiring the services of five exciting new talents.

These include the arrivals of Gabriel Jesus and Oleksander Zinchenko from Manchester City, both of whom earned high praise following their respective debut performances against Crystal Palace on Friday.

However, while some Gooners may believe there are still holes in Arteta’s squad that ought to be filled, focus now needs to turn to moving on the dead wood that lingers in Arsenal’s ranks.

So, with that, let’s take a look at six players the Gunners should be looking to flog before the transfer deadline on September 1st.

Nicolas Pepe (Current Value: £22.5m)

Where to start with Nicolas Pepe?

Signed from Lille for an eye-watering fee of £72 million off the back of a fantastic season in France, Pepe has simply never hit his stride for Arsenal since arriving in 2019.

After three seasons of below-par performances and a lacklustre goal return, the Gunners have accepted that it’s time to cash in on the Ivorian, looking set to recoup a fraction of their investment.

However, with the winger on extortionate wages, Arteta may have trouble finding a potential suitor to take Pepe off his hands.

Ainsley Maitland-Niles (Current Value: £9m)

Arsenal looked keen to hold onto Maitland-Niles a couple of seasons ago, rejecting advances from the likes of Wolves to sign the Englishman.

However, despite hopes of a prosperous career at the Emirates, the versatile midfielder just hasn’t found his place, and is now out of favour under Arteta.

With his contract set to expire next summer and Maintland-Niles unlikely to want to renew, the Gunners are in a race against time to collect a fee for their academy graduate.

Hector Bellerin (Current Value: £18m)

The story of Hector Bellerin is a frustrating one for Arsenal fans.

Once the most promising full back in English football after bursting onto the scene in 2015, Bellerin has dropped down the pecking order at the Emirates in recent years.

Not helped by a long-term injury he suffered in 2019, the Spaniard’s performances have gradually waned over time, going from a Premier League prodigy to Arsenal’s defensive liability.

Bellerin did manage to raise his stock again after an impressive loan spell at Real Betis last season, and consequently Arteta will be eager to offload the defender sooner rather than later, with there a hope that Betis, among other clubs, will come calling with a reasonable offer.

Pablo Mari (Current Value: £4.5m)

Not many squad members scream ‘fringe player’ more than Pablo Mari.

Signed from Flamengo in 2020, the centre-back has made just a handful of appearances for the Gunners in his time at the club, only called upon during dire times of defensive injury woes.

After a loan at Udinese didn’t exactly change the club’s outlook on the Spaniard, Mari now looks almost certain to leave the Gunners this summer, with Serie A pair Monza and Hellas Verona battling it out to obtain the unwanted defender.

Runar Alex Runarsson (Current Value: £1.08m)

This one will go down with the likes of Kim Kallstrom and Denis Suarez as a signing that will leave no lasting memory in the minds of Arsenal fans.

Making just one appearance in two seasons at the club, the Icelandic goalkeeper clearly has no place in Mikel Arteta’s plans.

Valued at just over £1 million, the Gunners will take anything they can get for Runarsson to get him off the wage bill.

Reiss Nelson (Current Value: £5.85m)

Being an English winger in the Bundesliga, it was inevitable that comparisons would be drawn to then-teenage starlet Jadon Sancho when Nelson was impressing on loan at Hoffenheim back in the 2018/19 season.

However, while Sancho is now a regular fixture at one of the Premier League’s top six, the same cannot be said for Arsenal’s Reiss Nelson.

Now 22 years of age, Nelson has seen his career stall, not taking advantage of the limited chances he’s been offered at the Emirates.

It’s safe to say that both parties will be hoping for a transfer away from the club this summer, with the young forward surely keen to reignite his career before it’s too late.

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