“Arsenal have a vast number of central defenders and presumably they’ll need to get rid of some of them this summer,” David Ornstein said on The Athletic podcast.
“We know that some of them, including Rob Holding, Sokratis and maybe Shkodran Mustafi as well, Arsenal will listen to offers for.
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“But it’s going to be an incredibly difficult and unpredictable market and we don’t know whether they will be able to do what they want to do.”
Mikel Arteta will have a wide range of options to deploy in the heart of the defence next season with the arrival of William Saliba and a probable permanent deal for Pablo Mari.
Also, let's not forget about Calum Chambers, who will recover at some point next season as well as Dinos Mavropanos, who is currently on loan in Germany.
Sokratis did say that he would potentially leave Arsenal if he doesn't get assurances of his playing time.
The Greek is on the wrong side of 30 and is unlikely to feature regularly next season. He has 1 year left on his current contract, so Arsenal might cash in on him to raise around £13m, as per Transfermarkt.
Mustafi has been on the rise under Arteta but his long-term future at Arsenal in up in the air given the past record of his mistakes. Unless he proves he can be consistent in the remaining games of this campaign, the 28-year-old is likely to be shown the door as well.
Transfermarkt evaluates the German at £10.8m at the moment.
Holding is probably the most difficult case among the three. The centre-back established himself as a leader of the defence under Unai Emery. However, a long-term injury last season has significantly hampered his progress.
This term, the 24-year-old has only featured in 9 competitive games hardly having the same impact as he had prior to the injury. So, probably, offloading Holding could also make sense but offering another chance to prove his worth might still be on the cards.
His contract will run for 3 more years. The coronavirus crisis and long-term absence slashed his transfer value. As per Transfermarkt, Arsenal should not expect to earn more than £8.5m if he's put on the market.
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