Five Arsenal players ‘train separately’ from teammates as Emirates exit edges closer

Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal have kicked off the season in strong fashion with back to back league victories as they aim to win the Premier League title for the first time in 20 seasons.

The Gunners are currently preparing for their third Premier League match which is an all-London affair against Fulham.

But a number of senior players have been absent from training this week as they edge closer to an exit from the Emirates Stadium.

Arsenal have the biggest net spend of any club in the Premier League this summer and it appears likely that as many as five fringe players will leave the North London club in the closing days of the window.

Which players were missing from Arsenal training?

Kieran Tierney, Albert Sambi Lokonga, Nuno Tavares, Folarin Balogun and Rob Holding were all absent from Arsenal’s most recent training session ahead of their game against Fulham.

The five footballers trained separately from the first team, according to Football Daily journalist Connor Humm and it appears increasingly likely that all five will leave this summer.

Sambi Lokonga, Tavares and Balogun were all loaned out from the Emirates last season and the trio are no longer a part of Mikel Arteta’s 2023/24 plans. 

All three players were missing from the squad amid talk of a potential move away from the club. Tavares has been heavily linked with a switch to Aston Villa as talks stalled over a Nottingham Forest exit.

While Balogun has attracted interest from Monaco, Chelsea and arch-rivals Tottenham who are all keen to recruit a goalscorer.

Tierney’s future at Arsenal also appears to be in doubt and he has failed to make the squad in any of the two games this season, despite a long term injury to Jurrien Timber.

Newcastle and Celtic were seen as the frontrunners to sign the player - but a move to St James’ Park seems less likely after the signing of Lewis Hall from Chelsea.

Holding is the second longest serving player at Arsenal at the club behind Mohamed Elneny and his departure would perhaps be the most surprising. The central defender signed for Arsenal in 2016 and was initially a first team regular under Mikel Arteta but he has fallen down the pecking order in the last two seasons due to the successful partnership of Gabriel and William Saliba.

The Sun reported earlier this summer that Besiktas had come forward with an offer for Holding but that bid was reportedly turned down in July.