Arsenal might be about to embark on their biggest-ever window of spending, with the club well-placed to improve on their current squad with big-money signings.
The Gunners spent £200 million in 2023, with the likes of Declan Rice and Kai Havertz improving the options at Mikel Arteta's fingertips. In the past 12 months, however, Arsenal have found themselves in an even stronger position, as attention turns towards the summer.
It was this time last summer that Arsenal were first linked with Rice – and it's probable that there are similarly big moves in the works again…
Arsenal are in a superb position to sell stars
Arsenal have had problems in the past when it comes to selling. As recently as Nicolas Pepe, the Gunners have been known to terminate contracts rather than finding a buyer for deadwood – but those days look to be over, looking at the prospective sales from the current squad.
Thomas Partey may not rake in much money, with the well-paid Ghanaian a free agent next summer – but beyond that, Arsenal have plenty of stars on the fringes you'd expect to command a decent fee. Aaron Ramsdale, Eddie Nketiah, Reiss Nelson and Emile Smith Rowe are all promising English talents aged 25, 24, 24, and 23 respectively.
In the loan army, meanwhile, Kieran Tierney and Albert Sambi Lokonga both have long enough contracts that the Gunners needn't worry about them losing value over time.
If Arsenal were to sell all seven aforementioned stars – plus Marquinhos and Nuno Tavares – it's unlikely they'd get less than £100m combined. With rising wonderkids coming out of the academy, several are easily replaced with no outlay whatsoever.
There's the injection of sponsorship and Champions League money…
This time last year, Arsenal were fighting for a return to the Champions League. This time, it would take an epic catastrophe for them not to qualify.
Another year at the top table only strengthens their hand – as does a new sponsorship deal. The Gunners have renamed their training ground after Sobha Realty, meaning that there could be a big influx in cash that we're yet to truly see the effect of, just yet.
…Plus whatever was in the bank to begin with
And then there's the starting budget. Last year, Arsenal spent around £200m, recouping £60m on sales.
The likes of Folarin Balogun and Granit Xhaka both left, with London Colney's sporting director Edu Gaspar selling well in order to boost the coffers. In fact, without the sales that Arsenal made, they may not have been able to afford Kai Havertz. But really, that kind of money was modest compared to what ownership Kroenke Sports Entertainment sanctioned for acquisitions in the first place.
Arsenal are chasing success across competitions and with KSE insisting that they're ambitious, they're going to want to allot the maximum amount of money so that Arteta can continue his huge rebuild. There could be big changes in north London on the horizon.
Could the Gunners be about to spend £300m? It seems more than possible this time around…
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