Arsenal spent more than £250 million on new players in summer transfer period and sports director Andrea Berta.
The desperation to offload Arsenal’s fringe player was clear on the day of the transfer deadline, with sports director Andrea Berta fighting to balance the book after a busy window. Gunner spent more than £250 million on new players and needed outgoing to thin out Mikel Arteta’s team.
Viktor Gyokeres, Martin Zubimendi, Noni Maduke, Cristhian Mosquera, Christian Norgaard, Eberechi Eze, Kepa Arrizabalaga and Piero Hincapie all arrived to strengthen the Arteta team. And once Hincapey’s loans were secured from Bayer Leberkusen, Berta’s focus switched to outgoing.
Arsenal has said goodbye to Olexandr Zinchenko, who completed six exit deals on the deadline and loaned it to Nottingham Forest and joined Nottingham Forest. They also signed a double contract with Hamburg, sending midfielders Fabio Vieira and Albert Sambi Loconga to the German club.
Vieira joined Arsenal in the summer of 2022 for £30 million from Porto, but was unable to secure a place on Arteta’s side. The playmaker has three goals and 10 assists in Arsenal’s 49 appearances, but after spending on loan at Porto last season, he joined Hamburg on a season-long loan.
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Sambi Lokonga joined in 2021 for £17 million from Anderlecht and set out for Hamburg on a permanent deal after loan spells at Crystal Palace, Luton and Sevilla. The midfielder made 39 appearances for Arsenal without scoring goals or assists, and Build explained how few gunners are from his double deal with Hamburg.
Sambi Lokonga is on sale for just 300,000 euros (£260,000) and is now entering the final year of the contract, but the newly promoted Bundesliga Club doesn’t even have to pay Vieira’s loan fees if you play regularly. Meanwhile, if Hamburg rises, a 25-year-old could sign a 20 million euro (£17 million). He is attributed to the fact that he still has two years left on the Arsenal contract.
Hamburg feels they have secured a good deal for both players. Arsenal’s negotiating power declined as the summer transfer period began to shrink. Gunners had to say goodbye to 12 first-team players this summer and put the deal together on the deadline for financial reasons.
“Fabio is a classic playmaker that brings a lot of creativity,” Hamburg board member Stephen Kunz said in a statement from the club. “We decided to strengthen our midfield. Fabio’s signature put us in a final vacant position with a high-quality player. He gives us more options to our offense.”
Sports Director Klaus Costa added: “Fabio is technically strong with his excellent left foot. He has a lot of creativity and can provide decisive driving force in the final and penultimate pass in the final third.
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