Arsenal’s chief executive, Sam Venkat, issued a letter to staff yesterday stating that eighth place in the league is not where they should be. The management understands the needs of the fans and that Arsenal should be competing for the trophy. But at the moment they are very far from that goal. So in this year’s transfer window, they will focus on a strategy of developing young players.
Arsenal’s dismal start to the league
This letter is rooted in the fact that Arsenal spent the highest transfer spend in the Premier League this summer and signed six players under the average age of 23. But they have not been as competitive as they should have been at the start of the season as they have failed to score a single goal or point in the first three rounds of the league.
Gary Neville expressed his doubts on Sky Sports, saying that he couldn’t see what Arsenal’s strategy was in bringing in players. Now Venkat’s public statement may explain their recruitment strategy, although it seems that Kroenke has invested £150 million in transfers for Arsenal, he demands that the £150 million investment would not be devalued.
The signing strategy
A reporter for TA magazine, when describing Arsenal’s transfers, suggested that it looked like the team had invested a lot of money, but the actual cost of the transfers was not that high.their reinforcements come with instalment and performance related clauses, which are only triggered if the player’s appearances and performances meet the criteria.
Of course, the transfer strategy also has the intention of lowering the wage bill present. Back in 2019, Kroenke stated that Arsenal, who played in the UEFA Cup, had a Champions League level wage bill. Now that they are not even able to play in the UEFA Cup, lowering wages has become Kroenke’s claim this summer.
Ben White vs. Vannella
United and Arsenal brought in centre backs at the same time and it looked like Arsenal were spending more on transfer fees. But with Ben White earning just 80,000 a week and Varane earning a whopping £300,000 a week, Ben White is on less than a third of Varane’s wages. And Varane is 28 years old, he will be 32 when his contract with United expires, United could spend £100 million on Varane over 4 years and not bring transfer value to United after his contract expires.
But Ben White will only be 27 when his contract expires and the team will be able to get a large amount of money back by selling him. This is because they have found that players on lower wages are more likely to be sold. They invested heavily in the summer window this year, but the players they bought are players who are very likely to increase in value in the coming seasons.
Long-term plans
With this in mind, the ESPN reporter says that Arsenal have a long term plan to build their team, but they are overly motivated to make money in the transfer market. Arsenal have lost their ambition to move forwardand are not the same Arsenal as they once were.
You may be interested in the following related content that we have shared：
1.Den Bosch vs Excelsior：Tips, Predictions and Odds｜Netherlands Eerste Divisie（03/09/2021）
2.Arsenal’s baffling transfer strategy – Low price to sell, high price to buy
