While things are looking a little bleak at the moment, Arsenal are still in a position that seemed almost impossible just a few years ago.

Mikel Arteta’s side have gone from languishing in eighth place for back-to-back campaigns to fighting for the Premier League title for the third year on the bounce.

The Spaniard has overseen a massive overhaul of the side he inherited in December 2019, with only a few players like Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli surviving and continuing to play significant roles in the first team.

However, there is another survivor who was a part of the squad during Arteta’s first season, a player who joined the club that summer and was tipped to be a future captain, but now has to be sold for his own sake.

Arsenal's 2019 summer signings

So, before we get to the player in question, let’s examine a couple of other signings made that summer, starting with a player who is unfortunately considered one of the club’s worst additions of all time, Nicolas Pepe.

Under the management of Emery, Arsenal decided to smash their transfer record in July 2019 and spend a whopping £72m on the Ivorian international, who, in their defence, had just scored 23 goals and provided 12 assists in 41 appearances for LOSC Lille.

Unfortunately, as most fans will attest, the talented winger did not show that sort of form in North London, and while he left the club for good last September as a flop, his final tally of 27 goals and 21 assists in 112 appearances isn’t quite as bad as some would have you believe.

In stark contrast, the North Londoners also paid a hefty £27m for a relatively unknown 18-year-old centre-back from Ligue 1 that summer, a young defender who has since established himself as one of the best in the world, William Saliba.

Yes, while he would spend the next three seasons on loan in his home country, the Gunners secured the services of their number two in 2019, and following his competitive debut for the side against Crystal Palace in August 2022, he’s racked up 98 appearances for the team, signed an extension in 2023 and is rumoured to be getting another one soon.

However, the Bondy-born titan wasn’t the only defender signed by the club that summer, but unfortunately, the player in question has followed a path closer to Pepe’s than his in N5, despite being touted as a future captain at one point.

The Arsenal captain that could've been

Arsenal have had a long list of incredible captains over the years, like Tony Adams in the past, the technically brilliant, if a little controversial, Cesc Fàbregas in the early 2010s, the sharpshooting and, actually, just as controversial, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang during Arteta’s earlier tenure, right up to the midfield maestro, that is Martin Odegaard today.

However, in the summer of 2019, the club signed someone who perhaps could have been on that list in another world, Kieran Tierney.

The Scottish left-back joined the North Londoners from Glaswegian giants Celtic that August for around £25m.

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While he hadn’t played outside the Scottish Premiership at that point, there was a lot of excitement about what he could become.

That was largely thanks to his sensational play for the Hoops and the perception people had of him as a hard-working, no-nonsense defender, someone who was a throwback to a bygone era.

The then-22-year-old endured a mixed start to his life in the capital, though, as despite looking good on the pitch, he could only make 24 first-team appearances, as injuries kept him sidelined for large parts of the campaign.

The following year was much better in this regard, as while he still suffered a few setbacks, the Douglas-born dynamo made 38 appearances for the first team, in which he scored two goals, provided four assists and was called a “natural leader” by the manager.

The good times wouldn’t last, however, and even though the following season saw former professional Ally McCoist describe him as the “obvious captain” following Aubameyang’s exit, the talented full-back was once again plagued by injuries, and he made just 25 appearances.

Those fitness concerns must have been the final straw for the manager, as that summer, he welcomed in Oleksandr Zinchenko from Manchester City for £32m, and even though the Scotsman managed to avoid injury throughout the campaign, he was limited to just 15 starts and 21 substitute appearances.

Appearances

124

Goals

5

Assists

13

Goals + Assists per Match

0.14

Injuries (including Loan)

11

With the writing clearly on the wall, the former Celtic star joined Real Sociedad on a season-long loan last year, but as you may have guessed by now, injuries once again reared their ugly head and the 27-year-old was limited to just 26 appearances.

Today, the £110k-per-week full-back is still in North London but hasn’t made a single appearance all season thanks to yet another hamstring problem.

Therefore, even though he was once tipped to be the club’s future captain, Arsenal must do what they can to sell Tierney before his contract expires in 2026, for their own sake and his.

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1 ByJack Salveson Holmes