Revealed: How can Arsenal afford their £125 million summer transfer spree? – originally posted on Sportslens.com
Arsenal have been active in this summer’s transfer market.
The Gunners have spent a combined £125 million on Nuno Tavares, Sambi Lokonga, Ben White, Martin Odegaard and Aaron Ramsdale.
All of the players brought in are of the age of 23 or under. This is a deliberate approach taken by Mikel Arteta and the board to build a strong core for the future.
The size of Arsenal’s investments in these young players is indicative of Arteta’s faith in his new faces.
This is especially the case for White and Odegaard, who are expected to instantly improve the starting lineup and develop into top-class footballers over the coming years.
Biggest Spenders – Summer 2021
Arsenal – £129m
Manchester City – £100m
Chelsea – £97.5m
Aston Villa – £93m
Leicester £55m pic.twitter.com/oQeVG2vPT6
— Football Daily (@footballdaily) August 19, 2021
While some may argue that the quality of players brought in isn’t reminiscent of Arsenal’s stature, one must also remember the absence of European football at the Emirates Stadium.
It is extremely difficult to attract world-class players without the appeal of Champions League football.
The heavy expenditure is a testament to the trust Arsenal’s board has in Arteta.
The Gunners have outspent the likes of Manchester United, Manchester City, Chelsea and Liverpool this summer.
The club’s latest accounts showed a loss of £47.8m, lest we forget, and in the last year, they have made more than 50 redundancies.
Also, after finishing eighth in the Premier League last season, there is no European football to aid the financial situation in the coming months.
So, for a club that operates with a self-sustaining model, where is the money coming from?
In part, this summer’s spending has been made possible by financial guarantees provided by the club’s owners, Kroenke Sports & Entertainment – claim The Telegraph.
Arsenal took out a bank loan towards the end of last season to repay the short-term £120m loan they had taken from the Bank of England to help them cope with the financial impact of the pandemic.
It is understood the second loan has allowed them to spend more freely than otherwise would have been possible.
It should also be noted that the departures of big-earners such as Mesut Ozil, Shkodran Mustafi, David Luiz and Sokratis have helped to bring down the wage bill.
In the last five years, only Manchester United and Manchester City have a greater net spend on transfers than Arsenal, so it is little wonder that Arteta and Edu, the technical director, want to try a new approach.
Without European football to offer, they simply cannot compete for the same calibre of players as Chelsea, Manchester City, Manchester United and Liverpool.
They have to think differently, aim lower, and trust themselves to maximise their new generation’s potential.
Read also: Tottenham ready to bid for Pau Torres
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Author:Raj Dholakia