5 Arsenal first-team players who could leave the club for free next summer

With three wins from four Premier League matches following a Community Shield victory over Liverpool, Arsenal will be delighted with the start they have made to the 2020/21 season.

Entering the campaign on a high after their FA Cup final triumph, Mikel Arteta looks to have the Gunners on the correct path as they aim to compete for European places again this term after finishing eighth last term.

In the transfer market, the Spaniard rounded off a successful window with the deadline day signing of Thomas Partey from Atletico Madrid.

The Ghana international, who cost around £45million, will definitely make the Gunners more competitive in the middle of the park and replaces the space left by Lucas Torreira who went in the opposite direction on loan.

Attention will now fully turn to matches on the pitch but it won’t be too long until the January window comes around.

When it does, the North London side have a number of players with contracts expiring next summer, meaning they will be free to talk to other clubs abroad about a possible free transfer.

But who are those names who could be leaving the Emirates on a free in around nine months time?

Here’s the five senior first-team players whose Arsenal deals are running down…

Mesut Ozil

We have to start with the most successful Arsenal player on this list and that’s Mesut Ozil. The German lit up the Emirates after moving from Real Madrid back in 2013. However, in recent seasons, his performances have often come in for criticism and he’s found himself out the team on a regular basis. Now under Mikel Arteta, the three-time FA Cup winner seems to have been frozen out having yet to feature in a matchday squad. To make things worse for the 31-year-old, on Thursday he was left out of Arsenal’s Europa League squad. It seems that the club’s highest paid player – earning around £350,000 per-week – is nearing the end of his rollercoaster time in North London.

Sokratis

Another player who featured heavily in the first-team but now seems to not be in Arteta’s plans is Sokratis. Signed from Borussia Dortmund in July 2018, the Greek defender has made 69 appearances for the club. However, like Ozil, he is yet to appear this season and has been left out of the Europa League squad.

Shkodran Mustafi

Focus now turns to another centre-back in the shape of Shkodran Mustafi. The German, who was signed from Valencia in 2016, was actually a regular in Mikel Arteta’s starting XI since the Spaniard took over but an injury in the FA Cup semi-final against Man City still sees him sidelined. Unlike the previously mentioned Ozil and Sokratis, the 28-year-old is expected to come back into the frame once he returns to full fitness with his inclusion in the Europa League squad suggesting that.

David Luiz

The unmistakable David Luiz is the third central defender on our list. Signed from Chelsea last summer, the Brazilian has had an up and down spell at the Emirates. There’s been glaring errors made by the 33-year-old but then he’s also put in some commanding performances. Signed a new one-year deal back in June and is very much in the plans of Arteta who will want his leadership skills to help players with lesser experience this term.

Matt Macey

We finish with the most unrecognisable name on the list in goalkeeper Matt Macey. The stopper joined Arsenal back in 2013 from Bristol Rovers’ academy but has made just two senior appearances – both coming in the 2017/18 season. Accrington Stanley, Luton Town and Plymouth Argyle have all had the 26-year-old on loan in that time. Macey picked up an FA Cup winner’s medal in August as he was named on the bench and has been included in Arteta’s Europa League squad for this term alongside fellow goalkeepers Bernd Leno,  Runar Alex Runarsson, James Hillson and Dejan Iliev.