Edu Must Finally Sell the Arsenal Defender Who Earns More Than Gabriel

As the 2023/24 season draws to a close, it is time for Arsenal to step up their game and continue to push Manchester City in the hunt for the Premier League Cup. They currently sit at the top of the table with 80 points, one point ahead of Pep Guardiola’s side, who still have a game in hand and a win will take them to the top.

It’s certainly been another good season for Mikel Arteta’s side, even if they could do without a trophy again. According to Sofascore, they are the Premier League’s top scorers with 85 and have conceded the fewest goals with 28. Furthermore, the Gunners have only lost one league game in 2024.

If Arsenal go trophyless again this season, it certainly means we could see a pretty big squad overhaul in the 2024 summer transfer window. There are certainly some players who could be on their way out, including Thomas Partey, who has been linked with a move away from Emirates Stadium.

However, there is another player the Gunners could sign this summer. Despite his contributions to the last two title campaigns under Arteta, he has plenty of money and could well leave this summer.

The player in question is former Manchester City left-back Oleksandr Zinchenko.

How much Arsenal could save by selling Zinchenko

The 27-year-old Ukraine international joined Arsenal from the Citizens for £32million in 2022 but could leave the Emirates Stadium in the summer amid concerns over his role as the club’s number 1 left-back.

According to Capology, Zinchenko is the ninth highest earner in the current Arsenal squad and is currently paid £150,000 a week. Remarkably, that’s more than some of Arsenal’s biggest stars, including the imperious Gabriel, who earns £100,000 a week, and the in-form Leandro Trossard, who earns £90,000 a week.

Two clubs are reportedly interested in signing the Ukrainian, for whom Arsenal have set a price of £38.4m, giving them a profit of £6.4m on the original deal. According to Football Transfers, Bayern Munich and Newcastle are showing interest in bringing Zinchenko to their respective clubs.

With that in mind, it could well be that the Gunners are looking to sign Zinchenko this summer in order to reduce wage costs and gain additional transfer funds which they can then reinvest elsewhere to improve the squad.

Oleksandr Zinchenko’s season in numbers

It’s fair to say that the 2023/24 season was disappointing for Zinchenko as he played much less than he probably would have liked. Despite missing eight games through injury, the 27-year-old still made just 34 appearances in all competitions, but only 26 in the Premier League, contributing to three goals.

In fact, Mikel Arteta certainly had plenty of options available to him at left-back. Aside from Zinchenko, Poland international Jakub Kiwior played 18 times at left-back this season, while Takehiro Tomiyasu played there 16 times in all competitions. There is also the thought that Jurrien Timber could return. There was definitely good competition for places.

That being said, Zinchenko’s best role may not even fall by the wayside. After all, he has become a liability for the defense in this position due to his poor performance in the 2-0 defeat against Aston Villa described as “horrific”. by Gunners writer Oli Price Bates.

Instead, he was often deployed as a midfielder, where he often plays for Ukraine. His outstanding progressive passing numbers certainly suggest he could fit into the Gunners team there.

According to Fbref, Zinchenko averages 11.72 progressive passes per 90 minutes, 2.56 passes into the penalty area per 90 minutes and 7.53 passes into the final third per 90 minutes. This puts him in the top 1% for the first two numbers and in the top 2% for the second number.

This certainly suggests that the 27-year-old could work well in the number eight position vacated by Granit Xhaka last summer. Additionally, Zinchenko could thrive if he operated as a left-back in possession in midfield, as he has done at times for the Gunners.

However, Arsenal could make a profit by selling Zinchenko and the fact that he earns £150,000 a week means that signing him is a financially sound decision.

Although he has served the club well over the past two years, selling the 27-year-old would mean Arsenal can still develop as a team and continue to push Manchester City towards the Premier League.