Arteta considers selling Arsenal players as Kroenke targets summer squad reinforcements

Mikel Arteta tipped to sell Arsenal star in summer transfer window: ‘Doesn’t trust him’

Arsenal are looking to raise funds to make signings this summer (Picture: Getty) Mikel Arteta has been tipped to cash in on Ethan Nwaneri this summer, with Alan Smith unsure if the Arsenal manager has ‘trust’ in the teenager. Nwaneri made a name for himself as one of the most exciting young talents in English football having broken into Mikel Arteta’s first-team squad aged just 15 back in 2022. The midfielder featured 26 times in the Premier League in the 2024/25 campaign, registering four goals and two assists, but found regular minutes harder to come by last season as the Gunners ended their long wait for another Premier League title. Nwaneri’s lack of minutes saw him loaned out to Marseille in January, but an underwhelming loan in France has raised question marks over the 19-year-old’s long-term future back at his boyhood club. Don't miss anything from the World Cup Crunch time beckons for Thomas Tuchel (Picture: FA via Getty Images) We've got the latest from the England camp, previews of the biggest games and everything you missed overnight in our daily World Cup newsletter. Sign up here. Josh Kroenke emphasised the need for Arsenal to bolster the squad from a position of strength at the end of the season, with Arteta hoping to bring in three or four major signings in the summer. Player sales will be necessary to raise funds and make room for the incoming signings and Arsenal have reportedly put several players up for sale. And Smith believes Nwaneri could be one of those players to make way, with the former Gunners striker wondering whether the midfielder might push for the move himself in search of regular minutes. Ethan Nwaneri was part of England’s World Cup warm-up camp (Picture: Getty) ‘As an academy product, it’s pure profit, isn’t it? And he hasn’t had much of a sniff at all and then went out on loan,’ Smith told BestBettingSites.co.uk. ‘I think as a manager, as a club, you’re always a bit reluctant to let a talent like that go who you’ve nurtured, but with the financial regulations it could free up money to buy elsewhere. ‘So we’ll see on that. But the player himself might feel that he could do with a move if he feels the gaffer doesn’t really have trust in him.’ Speaking in April last season, Arteta warned Nwaneri that his status as a Hale End academy graduate would not be enough alone to warrant a place in Arsenal’s long-term future. Nwaneri faces an uncertain future at Arsenal (Picture: Getty) ‘At the end, what has to define this football club is to seek for excellence and seek for the best, regardless if you’re coming from the academy or abroad,’ he said. ‘If we can have players from Hale End, much better because the identity is there. We grow with them and they know exactly what we’re looking for. ‘But at the end they have to earn it. Not for a week, not for a month, for years. Like anybody else, it doesn’t matter what department or role you have in the club. ‘You have to sustain performance and that has to be at the very highest level if we want to win and be where we want to be.’ Along with Nwaneri, wingers Leandro Trossard and Gabriel Martinelli, forward Gabriel Jesus and defender Ben White have all been linked with moves away from the Emirates Stadium. Jesus has been linked with a return to Brazil after a season in which he struggled for game time due to a loss of form and injury issues. Trossard, meanwhile, has emerged as a top target for Turkish side Besiktas while also attracting interest from several Premier League clubs. For more stories like this, check our sport page. Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Comment now Comments Add Metro as a Preferred Source on Google Add as preferred source

6 hours ago

Arsenal legend Alan Smith backs Mikel Arteta decision to sell £50m title winner

Arsenal legend Alan Smith (Picture: Getty) Alan Smith has backed Mikel Arteta’s decision to put three Arsenal title winners up for sale this summer. Arteta guided Arsenal to their first Premier League title since 2004 last season and to their first Champions League final in 20 years. Josh Kroenke emphasised the need for Arsenal to bolster the squad from a position of strength at the end of the season, with Arteta hoping to bring in three or four major signings in the summer. Player sales will be necessary to raise funds and make room for the incoming signings and Arsenal have reportedly put several players up for sale. It's finally here Get everything you need to know about the World Cup – England updates, the games to watch and stories you missed – in five minutes, at 1pm, every day. Sign up here. Wingers Leandro Trossard and Gabriel Martinelli, forward Gabriel Jesus and defender Ben White have all been linked with moves away from the Emirates Stadium. Arsenal legend Smith says he would understand if three of those players left, insisting the ‘only one’ he would stop from leaving is ‘versatile’ and ‘clever’ Trossard. ‘The only one from that list I wouldn’t want to see go is Leandro Trossard,’ Smith told Metro on behalf of BestBettingSites. ‘I think he’s had a great season. Leandro Trossard holding the Premier League trophy (Picture: Getty) ‘He can score important goals and he’s a very clever player, versatile as well. He’s mainly played on the left, but he can come inside. He’s a big fan favourite as well. ‘Looking at Gabriel Martinelli, it’s been a frustrating few years for him. Ben White, yeah, again, I’m sure there’s defenders coming to the club so he might feel like it’s time to go. ‘I can see Gabriel Jesus going as well, certainly if Arsenal buy another striker which it looks like they’re trying to do. Mikel Arteta is preparing to bolster his Arsenal squad (Picture: Getty) ‘I think he would be the first one that they would try and offload. But Leandro Trossard, for me, is one you wouldn’t want to let go.’ Jesus has been linked with a return to Brazil after a season in which he struggles for game-time due to a loss of form and injury issues. His compatriot Martinelli also failed to have the season he would have wanted, contributing just one goal to Arsenal’s Premier League title triumph. https://www.instagram.com/p/DYznzdrCB9W/?hl=en&img_index=1 Trossard has emerged as a top target for Turkish side Besiktas while also attracted interest from several Premier League clubs. Like Smith, Emmanuel Petit has also urged Arteta to clear the decks this summer and sell Noni Madueke as well as Jesus and Martinelli. ‘I think it’s easy to know what Arsenal are missing, for me it’s wingers,’ former Gunners midfielder Petit told talkSPORT. ‘You need to have strong and powerful wingers with technical skills that can make a difference on the wings. But before bringing in new players, they have to show some players the exit door too… ‘For me the likes of Gabriel Martinelli and Gabriel Jesus. I don’t know about Viktor Gyokeres because he just came into the club. ‘Leandro Trossard, I would keep him. But Noni Madueke, for me, isn’t good enough, I’m sorry to say that, but he must do much more than that to improve. ‘But we definitely need wingers and probably one striker with pace, technical skills, great movement. We need to improve up front.’ For more stories like this, check our sport page. Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Comment now Comments Add Metro as a Preferred Source on Google Add as preferred source

23 hours ago