Arsenal could consider shock summer sales for Ødegaard and Martinelli as Mikel Arteta looks to evolve his squad for the 2026/27 campaign.

With the 2025/26 Premier League season entering its final lap, Arsenal are within touching distance of their first top-flight title since the legendary Invincibles era. 

It has been a long, 22-year wait for the Gunners, who have spent the last three campaigns as the bridesmaids of the league. While the board has famously backed Arteta to the hilt, certainly more so than their neighbors in North London, there is a growing sense that the Spaniard must now deliver significant silverware to justify the immense investment.

Whether or not the trophy arrives in May, Arsenal are looking at a possible squad overhaul. The most successful dynasties in football history are built on the principle of refreshing the squad while still at the top, rather than waiting for a decline to set in. 

According to recent reports, club captain Martin Ødegaard and Brazilian winger Gabriel Martinelli are the two highest-profile names that could be on the chopping block this summer. 

For Ødegaard, the 2025/26 campaign has been a sobering struggle with fitness. The Norwegian maestro would be the first to admit that his rhythm has been shattered by a relentless injury list, including two knee issues and a shoulder problem that have kept him from building any real momentum in the midfield.

The statistical drop-off for the captain has been stark. In 20 appearances during this league season, Ødegaard has managed just one goal and five assists. This is a far cry from the 15-goal haul he produced during the 2022/23 campaign, or even his more modest output last year. 

For a player whose game relies so heavily on precision and consistency, the inability to stay on the pitch has raised legitimate questions about his long-term reliability as the team’s creative fulcrum.

Meanwhile, the inclusion of Gabriel Martinelli on the potential exit list is perhaps even more surprising. With 44 goals and 21 assists across the same sample size, the winger ranks second only to Bukayo Saka in terms of pure output for the Gunners. 

His raw pace remains one of Arsenal’s most potent weapons, providing a directness that few others in the squad can replicate. However, it appears that financial sustainability and a desire for specific tactical improvements may be whispering in Arteta’s ear.

There is a significant element of risk involved in offloading such a productive asset, especially one with Martinelli’s speed. Critics point out that if the club is prepared to let go of a high-output winger while retaining injury-prone players like Gabriel Jesus or Kai Havertz, they may be stripping away the very dynamism that put them in a title race to begin with. 

Ultimately, the decision to sell will likely come down to a choice between sentiment and cold, hard progress. If Arsenal manages to hold the trophy aloft in a few weeks, these sales might be viewed as the masterstrokes of a manager perfecting a winning machine. 

If they fall short again, however, letting go of the captain and a primary goal threat would be seen as a massive gamble that could either spark a new era of dominance or derail the progress of the last four years.