TBR View: Shkodran Mustafi may well see Arsenal career come to an end following Gabriel’s arrival

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Arsenal finally got their man this week when they signed Gabriel Magalhaes but the capture of the Brazilian has left a number of Gunners stars fighting for their futures.

Gabriel is one of the marquee captures of the summer. Given how much he was coveted across Europe, the Gunners have done exceptionally well in landing one of the top defenders on the continent.

It is widely expected that the former Lille man will be straight into Mikel Arteta’s first XI. And with that, will come the sacrifice of one or two players who might have been assured of game-time last season.

One of those players is German defender, Shkodran Mustafi, who could well find himself on the receiving end of the Gabriel deal.

Mustafi is one of a number of defenders who may go. Sokratis, Callum Chambers, Rob Holding, and Mustafi, are all players who Arteta may well look to get rid of, especially as he has also got William Saliba in the building too.

Arteta should get the money in now for Mustafi and re-invest

The tricky part for Arsenal here is balancing the contracts these players have left with any sort of sell-on value.

While the likes of Sokratis won’t fetch big money, Mustafi, even with just a year left on his current deal, does hold value given his age and reputation in the game. Indeed, let’s not forget this is a player Arsenal spent over £30m on back in 2016. (BBC)

One of the big talking points this summer at Arsenal has been how Arteta may need to sell before he buys. So, if he feels there is some market value in Mustafi, it could make sense to move him on.

Obviously, you do need a squad. But selling Mustafi would still leave him with options, even if Rob Holding joins Newcastle as expected as well.

Gabriel, Luiz, Saliba, Chambers, Tierney, and new signing, Pablo Mari, would all remain. All six capable in a back three. With that in mind, the sale of Mustafi might suit all parties and allow Arteta a bit of extra cash to re-invest in other areas of his squad.