Arsenal are a club who have enjoyed immense success in the domestic league in the past. They are the only club in England to win a season by remaining invincibles. Moreover, the club holds a record for being the record champions of FA Cup, 14 times. Despite all this past glory, the North Londoners have been starving of any major success in recent years. However, a major victory for Arsenal is the business done by them in transfer market.
The Gunners were in shambles before Mikel Arteta took the command in 2019. Since then, he has transitioned the team in a serious contender for the title glory from a mid-table side. All these achievements have only been made possible by intelligent signings and departures from the Emirates Stadium. The club only fell short twice of the title in the last two seasons.
How has the transfer business helped Arsenal?
The incomings Arteta has made throughout his tenure are impeccable. Players like William Saliba, David Raya, Martin Odegaard and Declan Rice have all played a crucial role in the team. Credit where its due, the management also made some intellectual departures from the first team as well, generating a good lump sum to make new signings. However, some of their record departures have failed drastically after leaving the London side. Considering this, it can be said they made a better choice by selling the players at their career highs.
A look into some of the players Arsenal did transfer business with –
There have been numerous talents from Arsenal academy who are now delivering at other clubs. Folarin Balogun, Alex Iwobi, Bernd Leno, Alex Oxalade-Chamberlain and Emile Smith Rowe are some prominent ones.
Folarin Balogun
The forward was a player coming from Hale End academy with a surplus amount of potential. However, he was unable to leave an impact in the first team. Consequently, the Gunners offloaded him to French side AS Monaco for a handsome amount of £35million.
Since his move, the American international has scored 11 goals in 40 appearances for the Ligue 1 side proving himself as a solid goalscorer. Despite this, the transfer can be said as a win-win situation for the Gunners as the amount was too good to be turned down.
Alex Oxalade-Chamberlain
The Englishman arrived at Arsenal in 2011 from Southampton when he was 17. During the six long years spell at The Emirates, Alex made a total off 198 appearances. He was sold to Liverpool in 2017 for a sum of £35 million.
The midfielder had a long injury record from then onwards though, halting his progress as a world-class talent. He won a Champions League, a Premier League and other domestic cups with the Merseyside club. Oxlade-Chamberlain is now only valued at £2.5m as per Transfermarkt – a real signal of his rapid decline since his move away from North London.
Emile Smith-Rowe
The 24-year-old England international is another name on the list. He is widely regarded as one of the best in his positions. He was a key figure for Arsenal a couple of seasons back but failed to make his mark since then. As a result, he was sold to Fulham for a staggering £34million move this summer. In his seven appearances for the Cottagers, Smith Rowe scored twice and assisted once.
What next for Arsenal now in the league?
Mikel Arteta has made fans trust the process and the results are now in front of everyone. However, it can be jolted by injuries to Martin Odegaard and Bukayo Saka lately. Although there are enough options on the bench, the absence of aforesaid two is a big blow. The only concern for Arteta will be no more injuries now. Given they will have a tight run a fixtures, it will be a tough job to perform for the medical staff.
Whatever be the end of the season delivers, the business strategy of Arsenal is there key to success at present as well as in the coming future.
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