3 players Arsenal should sell to increase their transfer budget

Unai Emery's first season at Arsenal has gone better than expected with the Spaniard on course to lead Arsenal to finish inside the top 4. The former PSG and Sevilla manager could also lead Arsenal to Europa League glory and with Champions League football being the priority for next season, Arsenal will have to make some major reinforcement before the start of the 2019-20 season.

Emery's first season saw some major additions to the squad with players like Lucas Torreira, Matteo Guendouzi, Bernd Leno and Sokratis all being instrumental for Arsenal in their debut season. However, with the way this season has gone so far, it's clear Emery will still need to sign a few more players for Arsenal to be genuine title contenders.

With Arsenal failing to sign anyone in January, and with rumors doing the rounds that Emery will just have around £40 million to £50 million to spend this summer, Arsenal will definitely have to sell a few players if they want to make decent signings. Arsenal have their sights on a minimum of 3 players with a centreback, a winger and a replacement for Aaron Ramsey a priority.

Apart from that, Emery might also go in for a left-back depending on if Nacho Monreal leaves, but no matter what the current budget will clearly not be enough.

Here is a look at 3 players Arsenal should sell this summer to increase their transfer budget:

#3. Takuma Asano

Takuma Asano has not developed into the player Arsenal hoped he would.

The Japanese striker joined Arsenal in 2016 and is yet to make an appearance for the North London club. Asano was loaned out to Stuttgart for two years and in those two years, he made a total of 45 appearances for them and scored only 5 goals and assisted another 5. He is currently spending this season on loan at Hannover and in 15 appearances he has only managed 1 goal and 1 assist.

While the Japanese striker was highly rated when Arsenal signed him, he has failed to live up to the hype and has clearly not developed the way Arsenal wanted him to. If he is struggling to make it in Germany he is definitely going to struggle in the Premier League and it is time Arsenal sell him.

Arsenal paid around €4 million for him and while his value would have not increased since then, Arsenal can certainly get back the money they paid for him if they decide to sell him this summer. While €4 million is not a lot of money, at this point Arsenal can do with any additional money they recieve.

#2. Calum Chambers

Calum Chambers has struggled to establish himself at Arsenal.

Calum Chambers is another player who showed great promise prior to joining Arsenal and so far, the former Southampton player has disappointed. Since joining Arsenal in 2014, Chambers has struggled to nail down a place in the starting 11, with the defender only being used as a backup or if the first choice defenders were either suspended or injured.

It's been five years since he joined Arsenal and while he has made a total of 83 appearances for the Gunners, he never made a lasting impression. In those five years, he spent two of them on loan, with the first being at Middlesborough, and the most recent being at Fulham. To make matters worse, Chambers has been an integral part of both teams during these loan spells and both these clubs have been relegated.

While Chambers alone cannot be blamed for this, it put into question if he is good enough to get into the Arsenal starting 11 given Arsenal's ambitions following Emery's arrival. Just to be clear, I'm not saying Chambers is not a good player, he is decent and any Premier League team except the top six would be lucky to have him, but after 5 years it's time for Arsenal to move on from him.

Arsenal paid €20 million for Chambers and while they certainly won't get that whole amount back should they decide to sell him, Arsenal can certainly get at least €10 to €15 million for the versatile player.

#1. Mohamed Elneny

Mohamed Elneny looks destined to leave Arsenal this summer.

After spending 4 years at Arsenal and always being used as a squad player, Mohamed Elneny has never complained about his role at the club. Despite not being a regular starter, Elneny has always performed whenever he is called upon. When the Egyptian was bought by Arsenal, he knew he was never going to make the central midfield position his own.

Elneny's role at Arsenal has been reducing with each passing season and this year, he has only managed to make a total of 14 appearances. The former FC Basel man is not the fastest player on the pitch nor is he very technically gifted, but when he is called up he always puts in a decent shift and does the basics right.

At 26, Elneny will not want to spend the best part of his footballing career sitting on the bench and having already proven that he has what it takes to play in the Premier League, he will certainly not be short of suitors this summer with Leicester City being one of the rumored clubs after him.

With Lucas Torreira, Matteo Guendouzi, Granit Xhaka and possibly a new central midfielder arriving this summer, Elneny will most likely lose his place in the Arsenal team altogether and selling him or rather him moving on to another club seems like the right decision.

With a transfer value of around €10 million, selling him will definitely help Arsenal raise extra funds for their transfers this summer.

If Arsenal were to sell the three players mentioned in this list and along with Aaron Ramsey, Danny Welbeck, Carl Jenkinson, David Ospina and Petr Cech's wages being removed from the Arsenal books, Arsenal could generate at least another €25 million to spend on players.

Along with that, if Arsenal were to finish in the top 4 and also win the Europa League another €10 million could be added to their transfer budget and that could go a long way in securing some top signings for next season.