This summer is likely to prove to be an eventful one for Mikel Arteta regardless of whether Arsenal win the Premier League title or not.
For all of the plaudits that the Spaniard has won during the 2022/23 campaign, there are likely to be one or two thorny issues to sort out during the close season.
Luckily, one potentially delicate decision which may have threatened to derail the good work being done at the club looks as if it may have already been cleared up.
Get Football News France have suggested that the Gunners would be open to selling Folarin Balogun for at least €30m.
The player is currently on loan at Reims and, according to WhoScored, has an impressive 19 goals and two assists from 30 appearances in all competitions for the Ligue Un side.
That sort of output isn’t to be sniffed at, but given how well Arsenal have been playing under Arteta, the youngster can hardly expect just to pitch up at the Emirates Stadium in the summer and waltz straight into the starting XI.
Perhaps ill-advisedly, a source close to the player has intimated that he’s expecting exactly that, given that they’ve told L’Equipe (subscription required) that when Balogun returns to north London at the end of his loan period, he isn’t prepared to spend his time on the subs bench.
With that sort of attitude, the Gunners would appear to be doing exactly the right thing in naming their price.
The strength of Arsenal this season has been in the group dynamic, and under no circumstances can Arteta afford for that to change.