Arsenal's dream end to transfer window – four superstars sign in £295m outlay, six players exit

Arsenal have the chance to make this summer an unforgettable one in terms of transfers, with several potential deals taking the Gunners to unprecedented heights

Mikel Arteta will be well aware that Arsenal still have plenty of work to do this summer.

The Gunners manager was perfectly clear about how the club needs to act in the transfer window following the agonising Champions League final penalty shootout defeat to PSG back in May. Arteta stated: "If you want to reach another level, we're going to have to show that ambition because we are more than capable of doing it, but it demands to be very, very ambitious, very fast and very smart."

So far, the Premier League champions, led by sporting director Andrea Berta in transfer negotiations, have fallen considerably short of those targets. They have been slow to act, which has led them to miss out on targets such as Jeremy Monga and Morgan Rogers to Premier League rivals. Last summer, Arsenal announced a whopping six signings in July compared to the two new additions confirmed up until now.

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The ambitiousness of those signings has also come into question. Alongside making Piero Hincapie’s deal a permanent one, third-choice goalkeeper Illan Meslier was signed as a free agent and Greek winger Christos Tzolis, largely an unknown quantity, was signed from Club Brugge in a £34m deal.

Double swoop for Vinicius and Alvarez

There are few players in today’s market that truly capture the imagination of fans. Julian Alvarez and Vinicius Junior are among the rare footballers who seem to have a certain world-class aura in today’s game.

Alvarez of Atletico Madrid has been a long-time target of Arsenal, with Arteta understood to be a huge admirer. The Argentine’s preference is clearly to join Barcelona this summer, but Atletico’s refusal to let him join a La Liga rival gives the Gunners a real chance of securing his signature.

The striker is a clear upgrade on Kai Havertz and Viktor Gyokeres, with the latter potentially being used in a player-plus-£51.7million deal to secure Alvarez, given Atletico’s interest in the Swede. The key point, therefore, is whether Alvarez prefers to stay in Madrid or return to England.

Arteta and Berta should go all out to convince him to join Arsenal, given he would represent a game-changing signing. The same can be said about Vinicius, whose ongoing contract situation at Real Madrid has seen reports emerge of a potential Arsenal pursuit.

For Arsenal, Alvarez and Vinicius represent two world-class players capable of striking fear into any defence in Europe. The financial task of bringing in both players is huge. But, should they manage to do so, the two respective deals would change the perception of Arsenal worldwide, placing them among the very elite.

Bruno Guimaraes signed for £80m

Arsenal have, understandably, been unwilling to spend the same exorbitant fees rivals Tottenham splurged on Sandro Tonali and Mateus Fernandes on a central midfielder this summer. They are currently locked in third-party negotiations with Newcastle over a deal for primary summer target Bruno Guimaraes.

The two clubs are still to reach an agreement on the 28-year-old. However, £80m today for a Premier League-proven star of Guimaraes’ calibre is not a ridiculous sum of money. Arsenal should fork out whatever they need to, and quickly, in order to bolster their midfield before the season gets underway, especially given Declan Rice’s recent injury niggles.

£26m defensive cover

The Gunners are going into the new campaign well aware that they are short of defensive cover. Several members of their defensive unit, including Jurrien Timber, Riccardo Calafiori and Ben White are proven to be injury-prone, which caused issues last season.

Added to that is the fact William Saliba could reportedly miss up to five months of the season with a back problem. As such, a right-sided defensive signing is essential.

Ezri Konsa has been mentioned as a target, though the Gunners are unwilling to meet Aston Villa’s current valuation, believed to be around £60m. Should Villa not budge from their demands, long-standing target Ivan Fresneda of Sporting CP is the ideal signing.

Fresneda, 21, is a hugely impressive talent said to be available for around £26m. Such a low fee would allow Arsenal to save funds and conduct their business further up the pitch. The Spaniard would be deployed at right-back, freeing up Timber, White and Cristhian Mosquera to occupy Saliba’s position until the Frenchman returns.

That would put Arsenal's total outlay on Alvarez, Vinicius, Guimaraes and Fresneda at around £295m – and give the squad the necessary quality to make the next step this season.

Six player exits

Arsenal need to shake off the perception that they are a poor selling club. Neither Berta nor predecessor Edu Gaspar have managed to get rid of the deadwood at London Colney, let alone secure impressive fees for departing players.

That has to change, starting with Fabio Vieira, Gabriel Jesus, Reiss Nelson and Christian Norgaard being sold. None of those four players are likely to play an important role next season and securing deals for them will help free up the wage bill, even if little can be recouped in terms of transfer fees.

Meslier’s arrival also means Tommy Setford, aged 20, should be sent out on loan to continue his development. With the crowded nature of the midfield, Ethan Nwaneri would also benefit from playing regular football out on loan, with the caveat that his new club should be a stable environment - unlike the torrid Marseille loan he endured last season.