The summer transfer window is officially open! Well, only partially, but nevertheless it's expected to be a busy one for Arsenal as Mikel Arteta and technical director Edu have a lot of work to get through over the next 11 weeks.
From today (June 10), the Gunners can register any signings they make from fellow Premier League and Scottish teams, but they have to wait until July 1 to finalise any dealings with French, Italian, Spanish and German clubs, for example, as that's when the international transfer window opens.
Last summer Arsenal spent big and almost qualified for the Champions League. If they're to re-establish themselves as a top-four side next season Arteta must be backed in the transfer market once again and the Spaniard has already outlined his plans to club owner Stan Kroenke.
READ MORE: Gabriel Jesus may face delay for ideal Arsenal shirt number if he seals transfer before deadline
"Overall look back you have to be clear with what we have to do, but very clear as well that this is not where we want to be," Arteta said last month. "We want to be in a completely different position, challenging with the top teams. That’s the aim. This is not going to stop here.
"This is another step that was very necessary because it wasn’t only about where we are in the league table. We have much deeper issues than the club in the league table in my opinion that now have been resolved and look very, very strong. Now we have the real strong foundations now to build what we want to do
"We are going to have certain resources. Not unlimited resources, certain resources. With those resources, we have to do what we have to do in the best possible way. We don’t know what the rest are going to have in terms of resources, which I assume is going to be challenging because now it’s not a top-three, or top-four league, there’s a top eight, or 10 teams that are involved. That’s why we have to find a way to do again what we did last summer."
The good news for Arteta is that since KSE (Kroenke Sports and Entertainment) became Arsenal's sole shareholders, they have favoured the summer windows to spend big. With that said, a £350m outlay across the last three summers could point towards another huge spending spree if the trend continues.
Unsurprisingly a host of players have been tipped to arrive at the Emirates Stadium before deadline day on August 31 and many are expected to leave. So, what is the current state of play at Arsenal on the first day of the summer transfer window? football.london takes a look.
Incomings
One deal already in place is that of Matt Turner's £7m move from New England Revolution. The MLS outfit have already confirmed the transfer, but the plan on Arsenal's end has always been to make an announcement after the goalkeeper flies over to England to complete a medical.
And when speaking to Fox Sports last month, the 27-year-old revealed he's due to complete all the formalities from June 19 - although he can't officially be registered by the Gunners until July 1.
"My official release [from Revolution] is the 24th June," he said. "I think the Revs have games on the 19th June and then the 26th. So, I would be available for selection for the 19th but not the 26th. My flight's booked for right after that game on the 19th. My wife is actually heading over three weeks before that because she's due in July and she's got to get over there before that 36-week mark so we're gonna be split apart for three weeks. But she'll be over there, I'll get out there and then do my medical and get ready for a new season to start."
Meanwhile, Sao Paulo president Julio Casares has confirmed Marquinhos' imminent exit amid an agreement with Arsenal for a £3m transfer, but football.london understands the 19-year-old's arrival will not have any impact on the club's plans to bolster the first-team squad before deadline day at the end of August.
That brings us to potential signings. Two positions Arteta will look to address are centre-forward and central midfield. The main name to fill the former void is Manchester City and Brazil striker Gabriel Jesus as Edu has been in talks with the 25-year-old's agent since last November.
Leicester City's Youri Tielemans is an option to bolster the central midfield options and complete a trio that would include Thomas Partey and Martin Odegaard when all available for selection. With regards to the pair, the fact they are into the final year of their respective contracts can make it easier for Arsenal to conclude deals.
However, there are some problems. One is both are still away on international duty and in Gabriel Jesus' case, he is being linked with moves to London pair Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur so the Gunners may have a battle on their hands.
Another target is Bologna's Aaron Hickey as Arteta looks to beef up his options at full-back and the defender could be an astute signing considering he can operate on both flanks. The club are hopeful of completing an £18m deal, but like with Jesus and Tielemans international commitments have delayed any developments.
Any further additions may depend on what players are moved on and if any special situations arise. Gianluca Scamacca, Fabian Ruiz, Oleksandr Zinchenko and Richarlison are being heavily linked whilst a dream transfer for many Arsenal fans is a return to the Emirates for Serge Gnabry.
Outgoings
An area where Arsenal have already been extremely busy in during 2022 and they are likely to continue this trend in the summer as many first-team players are expected to follow Alexandre Lacazette, Konstantinos Mavropanos and Matteo Guendouzi by leaving permanently, whilst others are in line for loan spells next season.
Those likely to seek pastures new in the summer include Bernd Leno - which is not surprising given his replacement has already been earmarked - Nicolas Pepe after instructing his agent to find him a new club and Lucas Torreria who has made it clear that he sees his future away from north London.
Then there's a host of players from last season's loan army such as Alex Runarsson, Hector Bellerin, Pablo Mari, Ainsley Maitland-Niles and Reiss Nelson who could all be sold to generate funds.
There's still a degree of uncertainty over the future of Granit Xhaka as football.london understands that AS Roma had been keen on reigniting their interest in the Swiss international after missing out on a deal last summer and Daniel Ballard is available to leave permanently after impressing on loan at Millwall.
A loan move to a European club beckons for January signing Auston Trusty and Folarin Balogun may need another temporary spell away to aid his development as his opportunities will be limited if Arsenal end up bringing in a striker or two.
Contracts
Just as important as incomings and outgoings this summer is sorting out a few contract situations. Now, Mohamed Elneny has already signed his extension and it seems it's just a matter of time before there's an announcement regarding Eddie Nketiah's new deal.
But in Bukayo Saka, William Saliba and Gabriel Martinelli, Arsenal have three first-team players who represent an exciting future for the club that are out of contract in the summer of 2024 so ideally, Arteta, Edu and director of football operations, Richard Garlick must get them tied down to longer deals very soon.
As previously reported by football.london, talks with Saka and Saliba's representatives are planned for this summer. With the former being linked with a future move to Man City and the latter coming off a fine season in Ligue 1, it's vital those negotiations are successful.
