With a club-record deal for Declan Rice on the cards, Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta is now reportedly ready to axe seven stars from his squad in order to raise about £100 million (R2.3 billion) in player sales.
The Gunners are looking to build on their relative success from last season, when they finished second in the Premier League for the first time since the 2015/16 campaign.
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The team sat at the top of the English top-flight table for a staggering 248 days last term, but a late collapse saw eventual champions Manchester City pip them to what would have been their first league title in nearly 20 years.
Arsenal's capitulation was widely blamed on injuries to key players such as William Saliba, as well as an apparent lack of squad depth.
It is understood that the focus for manager Arteta now is to have the desired quality and depth in his first team so that they can mount a stronger challenge for the full course of next season.
As such, they are reportedly looking at three key reinforcements, believed to be Ajax Amsterdam centre-back Jurrien Timber, Chelsea forward Kai Havertz, and West Ham United midfielder Declan Rice, with a record offer of £100 million (R2.3 billion), plus £5 million (R118 million) in add-ons, having been tabled for the latter – if accepted, this would make the Hammers captain the most expensive Arsenal signing ever.
With all three of them set to cost more than £200 million (R4.7 billion) overall, Arteta is now said to have identified seven players he is ready to sell in order to raise at least half of what they could spend on the aforementioned trio.
According the Daily Mirror, defenders Rob Holding and Kieran Tierney are up for sale, with both stars having lost prominence in the squad, with the latter being relegated to second fiddle due to the arrival of Oleksandr Zinchenko.
The midfield duo of Granit Xhaka and Thomas Partey are also facing the axe, with both said to be nearing moves away, to Bayer Leverkusen and Juventus, respectively.
Germany international Havertz's apparently imminent arrival is said to have put back-up striker Eddie Nketiah's future on the line, with Arsenal now believed to be open to getting a decent fee in for him amid interest from Crystal Palace.
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Forwards Nicolas Pepe and Folarin Balogun, who spent the past campaign out on loan in France, could also be offloaded, although the latter's situation is still in doubt after he impressed as he scored 22 goals for Stade Reims last season.
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