According to a recent report by the Telegraph, as stated in the Sun, Arsenal are ready to part ways with their German centre-half, Shkodran Mustafi at the end of this campaign. The same report has also claimed that the Gunners are eager to cash in on the underperforming defender to raise funds in the summer.
Mustafi has struggled to improve his game under Unai Emery and has been guilty of making some high-profile errors at the back. Recent injuries have also derailed his career at the Emirates Stadium, so it looks increasingly likely that there is no way back for him and he needs to move on in search of greener pastures next summer.
The North London outfit are in dire need of quality defenders if they are to challenge for major trophies in the coming years. The German defensive ace is simply not good enough to play for an elite club like Arsenal. Hence, it makes a lot of sense for Emery to cash in on him and use the money generated from his sale to bring in a suitable replacement who can bolster his defensive options ahead of the new campaign.
Mustafi has been prone to errors at the back and can also be quite sloppy on possession. There are better options available in the transfer market, so it is quite a surprise that the Gunners didn’t do enough to address their defensive concerns during the January transfer window.
Emery managed to sign Denis Suarez on a loan deal from Barcelona last month, but the Spaniard’s arrival won’t resolve Arsenal’s defensive woes. The North London outfit have conceded 36 goals in 25 league matches which have seen them fall behind in the race to secure a top 4 spot at the end of this campaign.
Selling Mustafi in the summer transfer period feels the right decision by Emery as the defender has gotten enough chances to prove his worth in the top tier of England which he has failed to take.
So unless there is a remarkable transformation in his game over the next few months, it feels like an inevitable outcome that the German centre-back will leave the club this summer after three years of mediocrity since his arrival from Valencia back in 2016.
