Arsenal boss ბMikel Arteta admitted his surprise at this summer’s high‑price moves, with four deals topping £100 m in the last few weeks. The most expensive was Yan Diomande’s £120 m switch from Red Bull Leipzig to Real Madrid, followed by Morgan Rogers’ £117 m deal with Chelsea, Elliot Anderson’s £116 m move to Manchester City, and Sandro Tonali’s £100 m transfer to Tottenham.

Asked whether the market’s willingness to pay such sums had shocked him, Arteta said, “Yes it has, yeah. I wouldn’t bet on that to be fair. But that’s the market…the value of the player is what somebody can pay for you.” He added that Arsenal remain chasing potential signings such as Aston Villa’s Ezri Konsa and Bayer Leverkusen’s Jarell Quansah.

The Gunners will face Manchester City in the Community Shield, with Arteta noting that Bukayo Saka, Declan Rice and Martín Zubimendi could be in contention after their return from the World Cup. He praised former manager Pep Guardiola’s impact on the Premier League and welcomed new coach Enzo Maresca, describing him as “the best coach in the history of football” in his own right.

The transfer window still has 18 days left, and Arsenal’s strategy will hinge on balancing squad depth with the evolving market dynamics.