The last few years have been nothing short of a whirlwind for Arsenal and their fans.
The North Londoners have gone from a team unable to qualify for the Champions League into one vying for the Premier League title for a third year on the bounce, even if the last month or so hasn’t been great.
A huge component of this dramatic change in fortunes has been Mikel Arteta, whose tactical nous and unbridled enthusiasm has changed the club from top to bottom. Still, alongside that, transfers have made a massive difference.
Arsenal’s league places under Arteta | ||
|---|---|---|
Season | Points | Position |
2019/20 | 56 | 8th |
2020/21 | 61 | 8th |
2021/22 | 69 | 5th |
2022/23 | 84 | 2nd |
2023/24 | 89 | 2nd |
The likes of Martin Odegaard, Declan Rice, Ben White and even Kai Havertz have been instrumental in the North Londoners’ rise, but while all of them are still key members of the team today, one of the club’s transformative additions in 2022 who seriously impressed his captain, has now totally fallen to the wayside, and must be sold as soon as possible.
Arsenal’s signings in summer 2022
Before we get to the player in question, let’s look at a few other players who joined the club during the summer of 2022, starting with the most expensive addition, Gabriel Jesus.
The Brazilian striker joined Arsenal from soon-to-be title rivals Manchester City for around £45m.
He enjoyed a stellar first few months at the club, in which he produced ten goal involvements in just 16 league appearances and became arguably the first name on the teamsheet.
However, while at the Qatar World Cup that winter, he suffered a severe knee injury that required surgery and kept him out until mid-March, and while he was still effective upon his return, he was noticeably less dynamic and dangerous with the ball at his feet.
Unfortunately for the former City ace, last season saw him eventually lose his place to Kai Havertz and his two-goal involvements in 15 games this season have done little to suggest he should be anywhere near the starting lineup any time soon.
However, while the 27-year-old is still a part of the squad, the same cannot be said of Fabio Vieira, who joined in the same summer from FC Porto for around £34m, and aside from a few glimpses of brilliance here and there, it’s hard to describe his transfer as anything other than a flop.
The Portuguese midfielder made 49 appearances for the team across the last two campaigns but scored just three goals and provided nine assists, which was clearly not enough for the manager, as he sent the 24-year-old back to Porto on a season-long loan in the summer.
Worryingly, the Santa Maria da Feira-born ace is also struggling at his old club.
In ten appearances, he’s provided just a single assist, which suggests he may not have a place in the squad at all once his loan is over.
Unfortunately for Arsenal, Jesus and Viera aren’t the only signings from 2022 who look like they have no future in the first team.
The Arsenal star who must be sold as soon as possible
So, considering the signings we’ve already gone over, it should come as no surprise that the 2022 addition we are talking about is none other than Oleksandr Zinchenko.
The Ukranian completed his £32m switch from City just a few weeks after Jesus, much to the excitement of Odegaard, who described the defender as “a really great player,” and early on in his Arsenal career, it was easy to see where the Norwegian was coming from.
“I’ve seen him play a lot and I really like his qualities, I think he’s a really great player. I think he can play both positions, sometimes as a left-back and midfield, I think he can even play as a winger. He can play different positions so I think he will be a great addition to the squad.”
He immediately replaced Kieran Tierney as the club’s starting left-back, and his ability to seamlessly invert into midfield when his teammates were in possession made a tremendous difference to the Gunners’ ability to control games and overwhelm opponents.
However, there was one significant issue: his defensive fragility.
Yes, for all of his technical brilliance, the former City ace was often exposed at the back, and this issue was on full display in the club’ must-win game at Anfield in April 2023, when Trent Alexander Arnold nutmegged him for the host’s equalising goal.
Unfortunately, it happened again last season, when he was shown up by Mohamed Salah this time, so much so that Gary Neville described him as a “liability,” and just a few weeks before that, former Gunners icon Tony Adams called him a “complete weakness” in defence following the club’s 1-0 loss to Aston Villa.
Unsurprisingly, now that Arteta has Jurrien Timber, Riccardo Calafiori – when fit – and even Myles Lewis Skelly to pick from, the Radomyshl-born ace is getting much less game time.
Zinchenko’s decreasing game time | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Season | 22/23 | 23/24 | 24/25 |
Appearances | 33 | 35 | 5 |
Starts | 28 | 24 | 2 |
Minutes | 2411′ | 2082′ | 178′ |
So far this season, the 27-year-old has only made five appearances, totalling 178 minutes, compared to 35 appearances, totalling 2082 minutes last season, and 33 appearances totalling 2411 minutes in his first campaign with the club.
Therefore, if the manager is unwilling to play him, the club should be looking to sell as soon as possible, especially when he’s on a whopping £150k-per-week.
Ultimately, Zinchenko helped to raise the floor when he first joined Arsenal, but a combination of poor defensive ability and the arrival of better full-backs have rendered him an unnecessary expense, one that should be sold.
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