The £34m flop will never play for Arsenal again

In recent weeks, Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has not been afraid to make an early sub. Just ask Eberechi Eze.

The gaffer revealed that Eze was upset about the cancellation of the break during the 1-1 draw with Brentford. Understandably so.

However, the big-money summer signing responded in style, scoring twice in a thrilling victory over Spurs nine days ago.

The Englishman was not the only victim of the first sub. Before suffering another injury, Martin Odegaard was withdrawn before the hour mark for back-to-back games against Nottingham Forest and Manchester United.

The latest victim of that curse is Leandro Trossard. The Belgian has been absent from the races in recent weeks.

Arsenal’s problem on the left side

One game, Arteta will start Trossard. In the next game, Gabriel Martinelli will start. The result is often the same; lack of end product and frustrating performance.

That said, the campaign wasn’t entirely off the Belgian and Martinelli. The former started the campaign like a house on fire, scoring eight goals and registering six assists in his first 22 games of 2025/26.

The latter, meanwhile, is on course for his best season since 2022/23, scoring 11 goals. However, in 2026, they really struggled, especially in the league.

Trossard has not scored a single goal in 14 games this season, while his Brazilian team-mate has not found the net in nine Premier League games. At least, he has scored five goals in cup competitions, but all of them have come against the likes of Portsmouth, Kairat Almaty and Wigan Athletic.

Arsenal may have spent a lot of time developing the squad last summer, but there is still one weakness at the Emirates Stadium and that is on the left. It’s not a new story either. They had warning signs last term when the duo scored ten goals apiece. When you consider that Trossard played 56 games and Martinelli 51, it wasn’t enough.

So, regardless of what happens between now and the end of the season, the Gunners should get an upgrade at left-back heading into the summer.

Cashing in on Martinelli and/or Trossard would help fund any new signings, but who else looks to be in danger of leaving in a few months?

The £34m signing looks to be over for Arsenal

Arteta doesn’t need to get his team out. It has been hailed as the best in Europe for a reason. However, a few players paid the price for increased positions in the team.

Ethan Nwaneri and Myles Lewis-Skelly are at the forefront of that but from a higher perspective, the future looks bleak for the likes of Ben White and Gabriel Jesus. If he has become an integral part of this Arsenal squad, it would not be a surprise to see them move on once the transfer window opens.

There are also borrowers. Jakub Kiwior will sign for Porto permanently in a £13m deal that was discussed during his first move to Portugal. Speaking of Portugal, Fabio Vieira should stay forever.

For Vieira, it has been an unusual time at Arsenal. Signed for £34m in 2022, Arteta revealed he was “very happy” to sign the young Portuguese attacker.

Signed in Portugal’s top flight, some suggested he could be their own Bruno Fernandes, having scored six goals and provided 16 assists in his last campaign at the club.

However, it never really worked for him in north London. Whether he was given the right opportunity to prove what he can do is up for debate but what cannot be debated is how difficult it was to sign this. Arteta’s worst? He’s definitely up there given the price tag.

When Vieira scored that wonderful goal against Brentford in his first year with the Gunners, he only started three league games in that period, barely kicking the ball.

That has been the story of his time in English football. In 2023/24, he saw just 301 minutes of Premier League action, making two starts. Because of this, it was no surprise to see the attacking midfielder go out on loan last quarter.

That said, since the Portuguese joined Porto, he has not enjoyed much of a season back at his boyhood club. Indeed, the 25-year-old has found the net just five times while providing six assists in 42 appearances.

As a result, it was a matter of another loan period for Vieira in 2025/26. This season he was on loan at Hamburg in the Bundesliga, and to his credit, he has made quite a name for himself.

It was far from a breakout campaign for Arsenal on loan but he was involved in eight goals in 18 league games, scoring four and assisting four. He has been in excellent form of late, scoring in back-to-back games against Mainz and RB Leipzig. In fact, the creative midfielder has scored three of his last four goals, notably beating the goalkeeper against Bayern Munich a few weeks ago.

After being hailed as “one of the Bundesliga’s signings of the season” by journalist Josh Bunting, it wouldn’t be surprising if the German club exercised their £17.5m option to buy the player.

That’s not an outrageous amount of money for Arsenal but it would be a significant sum for Andrea Berta. As Arsenal look to strengthen their squad even more, Vieira should not be part of it. More useful than Trossard, Martinelli, White and Co.

Not to mention that he has played well over the years but he will have to compete with the likes of Nwaneri and Max Dowman for minutes. Both should be prioritized.

Unfortunately for the £34m investment, he looks to have played his last game for Arsenal. Any hopes of a return to the club have been dashed following shock spells at Porto and Hamburg.

Related

Tierney 2.0: £50m star looks set to miss Arsenal start again

Arsenal’s £50m signing looks set to leave in the summer transfer window.