It might have felt like two dropped points at full-time, but Arsenal’s draw away to Manchester City on Sunday afternoon embodies the club’s transformation under Mikel Arteta.
The days when they were dismantled and embarrassed by the top teams are long gone. Instead, the Spaniard has turned his team into a lean, mean, winning machine with a defence that may well be the best in Europe, let alone England.
Ben White, William Saliba, Gabriel Magalhães, and now Jurrien Timber are the bedrock of a team that looks destined to finally end its two-decade Premier League title drought, be that this year or next.
However, there are still some players in the squad who are probably not good enough to play an important role anymore, including one who’s earning more than Gabriel and Timber.
Gabriel and Timbers salaries at Arsenal
Arsenal paid around £23m to Ligue 1 side LOSC Lille in the summer of 2020 to secure the services of a then 22-year-old Gabriel, and while there wasn’t much in the way of fanfare at the time, the Brazilian has since become an integral cog in Arteta’s machine.
He progressed well in his first two campaigns with the club, and while there were criticisms from those in the media like Rio Ferdinand over his supposed recklessness, he was handed a new £100k-per-week in October 2022, and to say he’s repaid the faith shown in him by the manager would be an understatement.
The 26-year-old was an ever-present in the backline last season, in which the Gunners produced the best defence in the league, and in his 137 league appearances for the club, he’s racked up 16 goals, equating to an average of one every 8.56 games.
Like the former Lille ace, Timber is now a key member of the North Londoner’s backline, which is remarkable considering this is his first proper run of games in the team following his ACL injury that kept him sidelined for almost all of last year.
Moreover, the former Ajax star has already played on both sides of a back-four and even in defensive midfield in his six appearances this season, and he’s done well at that, earning an 8/10 for his efforts against Tottenham Hotspur and an 8/10 for his display against City from the Standard’s Simon Collings.
Due to his short time at the club, the 23-year-old dynamo is still on the initial deal he agreed to of around £100k-per-week, and, like Gabriel, this means he’s earning significantly less than one of his teammates who might not have a future at the club after this season.
Oleksandr Zinchenko’s salary at Arsenal
Yes, the player in question is former Manchester City ace Oleksandr Zinchenko, who could have a serious fight on his hands to get back into the first team, if that’s even possible.
The Ukrainian international completed his £30m move to North London in July 2022, and much like his fellow former City teammate Gabriel Jesus, provided an instant boost to a Gunners side that had just missed out on a top-four finish.
In his first season with the club, the 27-year-old made 33 appearances for the team, and had he not suffered several injuries to his calves and knees, he would likely have made more.
|
Zinchenko’s Arsenal career |
|||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Season |
22/23 |
23/24 |
24/25 |
|
Appearances |
33 |
35 |
2 |
|
Injuries |
4 |
2 |
1 |
|
Goals |
1 |
1 |
0 |
|
Assists |
2 |
2 |
0 |
However, for all the control he could bring when the Gunners were in possession, the criticism of his defensive solidity eventually became impossible to ignore, with Gary Neville describing him as a “liability” during Arsenal’s game at Anfield last season.
Unfortunately for the Radomyshl-born defender, the discussion around his defensive fragilities continued, and even when he returned to fitness in the latter half of the season, he was replaced by Jakub Kiwior and Takehiro Tomiyasu.
This summer saw the club then splash £42m, including add-ons, to land Riccardo Calafiori, who is yet another defender capable of playing at left-back, and with Timber also in the team, it looks unlikely that he will see much game time when he returns from his current calf injury.
Therefore, considering he is earning a whopping £150k-per-week and is potentially now third-choice left-back, Arteta must look for a way to move him on in January or next summer for the good of his own career and the team’s wage budget.
