Mikel Arteta urged Arsenal’s recruiting leaders to be “flexible and creative” as they seek to strengthen his team with limited funds this summer.
The Gunners, who have spent a lot of time in the past two summers in a failed attempt to qualify for the Champions League, face a summer in which they will have little money to invest without first selling their team members. COVID-19 had a strong financial impact on Arsenal, which lost around £ 25 million a month during the height of the crisis and may not have European football to increase its revenue next season.
Arsenal must finish in the top seven of the Premier League or win the English Cup, where they will face Manchester City in the semifinal on Saturday, to guarantee a series of continental football games dating back to 1995. They fail to do so and the Gunners risk lose a minimum of around £ 30 million in broadcast and day earnings.
That money could have gone some way to fill the gaps that Arteta has identified in his team, first of all a midfield to which he wants to add Thomas Partey of Atletico Madrid. Without selling first or agreeing to a swap agreement, its £ 46.5 million release clause appears to be out of reach.
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After the exploratory talks of the last few months, Arsenal has put its transfer plans on the ice until the rest of the season, focusing exclusively on the part of Arteta and the search for European football.
Even when the market reopens, Arsenal shouldn’t dive into the middle of things. Sources said football.london that the Gunners could still take their time before making commitments, evaluating an unprecedented market in which some clubs may have a greater incentive to sell.
In such unprecedented circumstances, it is critical, Arteta noted, that the Gunners are responsive and put themselves in a position where they can take advantage of any unusual fluctuations.
Discussing his transfer scenarios and what will inform them, Arteta said: “There are many different aspects, obviously the financial one depending on where we end up, what happens is one. Depending on the future of some players [is another] and obviously depending on the transfer market.
“We don’t know what kind of transfer market we will find. It is something unique, it has never happened and there are many question marks about it. We cannot stick to something that cannot be done.
“We have to be flexible and creative not to react when that happens, but to have very clear ideas on that scenario what we have to do and what we have to do.”
(Image: Stuart MacFarlane / Arsenal FC via Getty Images)
Whether Arsenal has staff in place to navigate the treacherous waters of the European transfer market was a question raised and answered on Friday by former captain Tony Adams, 53-year-old head of football punisher Raul Sanllehi and technical director Edu for dismantling The Gunners’ scouting network and warning the duo are “ out of their depth. ”
Such a suggestion was briefly given by Arteta, who insisted on having “full confidence” in Sanllehi and Edu.
He added: “We have a very good relationship with Edu, Raul, [managing director] wines [Venkatesham] and direct contact with the owners. We know what we want to do, that’s not the problem. “
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The problem may be whether finances are there to do it, particularly without any form of European football. For the time being, he remains under Arsenal’s control if they play in the Europa League, even though they should have beaten City on Saturday and then Manchester United or Chelsea in the final.
Wednesday’s 2-1 victory over Liverpool led Arsenal to hunt for the top seven places in the Premier League, although they will need two Sheffield United, Tottenham and Wolverhampton Wanderers to lose points in the last two games of the season.
Arteta said: “We don’t know exactly what will happen and what we will be able to do to keep the players and not the players. It will depend a lot on what we do on the field in the next three or four games, this is one, it is in our hands.
“We have to maximize it and then start putting all the question marks as quickly as possible to try and do what we want to do.”
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