Arsenal star could make £30m move to rivals in Mikel Arteta u-turn: report

By
published

Arsenal are prepared to let a player depart the Emirates Stadium to a rival, as Mikel Arteta changes his mind on his side

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta arrives at the stadium prior to the Premier League match between Arsenal FC and Wolverhampton Wanderers at Emirates Stadium on May 28, 2023 in London, England.
(Image credit: Stuart MacFarlane/Arsenal FC via Getty Images)

Arsenal are ready to offload a player that Mikel Arteta previously claimed was a part of his plans.

The Gunners began their season with a 2-1 win over Nottingham Forest but looked far from comfortable in the closing stages of the game after the Reds came back into the game via a Taiwo Awoniyi goal on the break. Arsenal picked up what looked like a bad knock to Jurrien Timber, too, with the Dutchman forced off clutching his knee.

Arteta could opt to sell a potential backup to the new signing though, with 33 senior stars in his current squad.

Eddie Nketiah of Arsenal celebrates with teammates after scoring the team's first goal during the Premier League match between Arsenal FC and Nottingham Forest at Emirates Stadium on August 12, 2023 in London, England.

Arsenal got off to winning ways on Matchday 1 – but not without questions over the squad (Image credit: Clive Mason/Getty Images)

The Telegraph have reported that Newcastle United want Gunners full-back Kieran Tierney on loan for the season, after the Scot was omitted from the squad entirely at the weekend.

Tierney moved to Arsenal for £25 million in 2019 under former boss Unai Emery and has previously been a key figure at the Emirates Stadium. Injuries have meant that he's not been reliably available, however, with Oleksandr Zinchenko, Takehiro Tomiyasu, Jakub Kiwior and now Timber all available as options at left-back.

VIDEO: Why Arsenal's Wait For A Premier League Title Is FINALLY Over

Should Tierney move, it would mark a change of heart with Arteta's plans, since the Basque boss has previously stated that the Isle of Man-born defender is still of value to him. 

"He is, he is in our plans," Arteta said before the season started. "Every time he's played in pre-season, he's been really good. This is why we want to create competition in the team, raise the level of each individual and that's going to be a huge benefit for the team to get to another level."

Kieran Tierney

Kieran Tierney could depart Arsenal in the coming weeks (Image credit: David Price/Arsenal FC via Getty Images)

Arsenal would prefer to sell to Newcastle – but would still be strengthening a title rival, following the Toon's 5-1 smashing of Aston Villa on the opening weekend of the season.

Tierney is valued at €25 million by Transfermarkt.

More Arsenal stories

Arsenal transfer news is coming thick and fast as we enter the final few weeks of the summer window.

The Gunners are reportedly willing to offer two players to Inter Milan in exchange for Nicolo Barella – and they could be about to complete the signing of David Raya from Brentford on quite an unusual basis. Arsenal are also said to have made an audacious approach for one of Barcelona’s most exciting young talents.

In FourFourTwo's Season Preview, we ask whether Arsenal are truly back, following last season's title challenge.

Mark White
Mark White
Content Editor

Mark White is the Digital Content Editor at FourFourTwo. During his time on the brand, Mark has written three cover features on Mikel Arteta, Martin Odegaard and the Invincibles, and has written pieces on subjects ranging from Sir Bobby Robson’s time at Barcelona to the career of Robinho. An encyclopedia of football trivia and collector of shirts, he first joined the team back in 2020 as a staff writer.