Arsenal’s team has been declared not only the best in the country this season but the best in Europe as well. It’s hard to argue with that claim that you’re completely honest.
The Gunners have topped the English top-flight and finished the first round of the Champions League sitting top of the table.
They are in the driver’s seat to win the Premier League and it would not be a surprise if Mikel Arteta’s men make the semi-finals in Europe, at the very least.
That said, this team isn’t perfect. It’s certainly not firing on all cylinders and changes are likely in the summer transfer window.
That doesn’t just mean signing new players, it also means getting rid of the dead wood. Leandro Trossard is unfortunately one of them.
Why Arsenal need to sell Leandro Trossard
The Belgian has been a fine signing since arriving in January 2023 from Brighton and Hove Albion for just £27m.
Trossard wasn’t Arsenal’s first choice that winter, especially with Mykhailo Mudryk’s long-term relationship, but when the Ukrainian speedster opted for Chelsea instead, the Gunners needed to make a move.
They head towards Trossard and end up having the last laugh. At the end of 2022/23, he proved to be one of the best players at Arsenal, registering ten goal involvements (1 goal, 9 assists) in 20 outings.
Since then, he has not been as dominant but still produces some moments in an Arsenal shirt. A super sub, a big event man, the winger has shown exactly why Arteta rates him so highly. There was that wonderful goal against Porto in the Champions League and the equalizer against Bayern Munich in 2023/24.
|
Trossard Arsenal work |
||
|---|---|---|
|
The season |
Games |
Terms & Conditions |
|
2022/23 |
22 |
11 |
|
2023/24 |
46 |
19 |
|
2024/25 |
56 |
19 |
|
2025/26 |
38 |
14 |
However, after finding the net 17 times in that campaign, he has struggled to replicate those performances, even if he started 2025/26 as a house on fire.
Arsenal made the controversial decision to give him a pay rise last summer and while his contract was not extended, he spoke volumes about how much the club valued him.
He repaid that by scoring eight goals and registering six assists in his first 22 games this season. However, the player who has won the ball has not found the net in 17 consecutive games.
A mainstay in 2026, now feels like the right time to cash in on an aging player. However, he is not the only one getting into that boat.
Arsenal must sell new Oleksandr Zinchenko
When Oleksandr Zinchenko signed for Arsenal in the summer of 2022, it changed the culture and nature of the club.
It’s not often that a defender does that, but it has changed the way Arteta can play. He went from a flying defender in the mold of Kieran Tierney to one of the best defenders we have seen in the Premier League.
Zinchenko’s ability to play the ball really changed Arsenal’s game, but unfortunately, his time at the Emirates Stadium ended due to constant injuries and poor defensive performances. He left in January, joining former club Ajax.
Arsenal’s most expensive signing of all time
The Gunners have spent a lot of money in recent years.
That same summer, Arsenal re-welcomed Gabriel Jesus to the club from Manchester City and alongside Zinchenko, he changed the game.
With Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang no longer in the team, the Londoners needed a new striker and found one in the form of Jesus, who, like Trossard, started his career in the English capital as an understudy.
Jesus’ movements were extraordinarily beautiful and his ability to preserve his possessions and create something out of nothing was a joy to behold. Think of the Brazilian soccer player of old and that’s what Jesus was in the first months of his time wearing the red and white.
In his first 12 Premier League games for Arsenal, the striker scored five goals and provided six assists. However, despite a hat-trick against Crystal Palace last season, that’s about as good as it got him in London.
|
The work of Gabriel Jesus in England |
||
|---|---|---|
|
The season |
Games |
Goals |
|
2016/17 |
11 |
7 |
|
2017/18 |
42 |
17 |
|
2018/19 |
47 |
21 |
|
2019/20 |
53 |
23 |
|
2020/21 |
43 |
14 |
|
2021/22 |
41 |
13 |
|
2022/23 |
33 |
11 |
|
2023/24 |
36 |
8 |
|
2024/25 |
27 |
7 |
|
2025/26 |
21 |
5 |
Whether it was due to injury or poor performance, Jesus was unable to match the standards of 2022/23. Of course, there was that dreaded ACL injury that kept him out for most of 2025, but like Zinchenko, the Brazil international has now moved on.
Although this striker found the net twice against Inter Milan in the Champions League this season, he is now not even seen in his team. Arteta has not picked Jesus in any of the last four Premier League games, the fact that the rubber only underlines his lack of importance.
Time for Arsenal to cut their losses and let him go this summer. He is wanted back by Palmeiras, but where the striker’s future lies remains to be seen. Either way, these last few months of the ongoing season should be the last at the Emirates.
The Arsenal star wants to leave and will not sign a new deal with ‘many’ clubs already linked with him
His future looks far from the Emirates.
