Ranking all 31 Arsenal signings under Mikel Arteta from worst to best
Mikel Arteta has made 31 signings since taking charge at Arsenal back in December 2019 – but who has been the best and worst of those purchases?
Arteta has transformed Arsenal from mid-table lightweights into Premier League contenders but there has been a mixed bag with regard to his signings.
Some are now the most popular figures at the club, whilst others moved on as swiftly as they arrived. We’ve ranked all of them from worst to best.
31. Willian
Willian arrived on a free transfer and still felt like a waste of money. Following his strong end to the 2019-20 season with Chelsea, he refused a contract extension with them and chose to stay in London.
Signing a three-year deal on a high wage, Willian claimed that Arteta signed him to win the Champions League within three seasons.
His best game came on his debut, with two assists away at Fulham, but things went downhill from there.
He ended up terminating his Arsenal contract by mutual consent after just one year and both parties agreed to never speak of the move ever again.
30. Runar Alex Runarsson
A bizarre choice at the time, the Iceland goalkeeper was signed to replace the outgoing Emiliano Martinez on the bench as cover for Bernd Leno in 2020.
French football experts were baffled, claiming he was statistically one of the worst goalkeepers in the division, and it seems they had the last laugh.
He never looked comfortable, even in Europa League group stage games, and this came to a climax when he was surprisingly picked against Manchester City in the League Cup quarter-final.
Arsenal lost 4-1, where he was arguably at fault for every goal. He was soon packed off after that.
29. Auston Trusty
Signed in January 2022, arrived that July and was immediately loaned to Birmingham; sold to Sheffield United the following summer.
Arsenal made a quick profit on Trusty, so it wasn’t a terrible deal finances-wise, but did he ever even see the inside of the changing rooms at London Colney?
28. Nuno Tavares
“He is a young player with great promise who has developed very well,” said Arteta after signing Tavares in 2021 for £8million.
So raw he could’ve been served up as steak for carnivore-eating meatheads, Tavares married defensive vulnerability with the occasional flash of attacking flair.
Arteta swiftly moved on, but Tavares has turned into an assist king in Serie A with Lazio. Was he dumped too soon?
27. Marquinhos
Not that one.
The Brazilian winger is still on the books at Arsenal and is still only 21, but now on his third loan away from the club and back in Brazil with Fluminense, a breakthrough at the Emirates feels unlikely.
A low-risk signing who will probably earn them a bit of money in a transfer away. Not a disaster, but pretty pointless all the same.
26. Albert Sambi Lokonga
It felt like a smart signing at the time in 2021, but Lokonga never managed to prove he was worth the £17.2million Arsenal paid Anderlecht for his potential.
Not in north London, anyway. He’s now on his third loan away from the club at Sevilla, who have an option to buy for £10million. Not the worst loss, but not a great deal.
25. Pablo Mari
Six months after heading to Brazil to sign for Flamengo, Arsenal loaned in Pablo Mari in January 2020, before making the deal permanent the following summer for around £12million.
He quickly became surplus to requirements and left the club permanently in May 2023. We’re not sure why his deal was ever made permanent.
24. Fabio Vieira
Arsenal paid Porto £29.9million for Vieira back in 2022 and, while he was unfortunate with injuries, the forward never looked up for it and is now back on loan at his former club.
23. Raheem Sterling
Sterling only joined Arsenal and did so at the death in the 2024 summer transfer window.
The winger is capable of being brilliant on his day and he’s only on loan, but it has always felt like a bit of a marriage of convenience and Sterling has been incredibly underwhelming.
22. Matt Turner
Signed in 2022, Turner kept four clean sheets in seven cup appearances before leaving Arsenal for Nottingham Forest.
Forget his disastrous spell at the City Ground, Arsenal did well to recoup a healthy fee for the American goalkeeper.
21. Mat Ryan
Ryan arrived on loan from Brighton completely out of the blue in January 2021, as another backup for Leno, after Runarsson was deemed a threat to the backline.
A boyhood Arsenal fan, he performed admirably well in his three appearances for the club but Arteta chose not to sign him on a free transfer at the end of his loan.
The 29-year-old now plays for Real Sociedad in Spain, as a backup for Alex Remiro.
20. Neto
Middle of the pack feels about right for the Brazilian stopper. Neto was loaned in from Bournemouth to provide backup.
Now Arsenal have been eliminated from the domestic cups (save an improbable comeback at St James’ Park), then Neto is unlikely to see action in a Gunner shirt.
The fact he’s higher than 10 other players on this list speaks volumes to some of Arsenal’s transfer mishaps over the past half-decade.
19. Cedric Soares
Arteta’s first signing as Arsenal boss, Cedric was another questionable arrival. Arsenal paid Southampton to take him on loan, and Southampton couldn’t wait to be rid of him.
He was injured during his entire loan spell, so eyebrows were raised when the club offered him a four-year contract to stay in the summer of 2020.
The Portugal international finally made his debut six months after his arrival, and actually scored against Norwich, but his performances at right-back have been subpar.
18. Jakub Kiwior
Arsenal spent £20million or so on the left-back from Spezia in January 2023 and while he’s been serviceable, he’s yet to amount to anything more than a rotation option.
However, he’s only 24, happy to be a squad player, isn’t costing them a fortune and can be relied upon when Arteta needs to rotate.
17. Dani Ceballos
Ceballos’ first loan to Arsenal in 2019-20 was impressive and one of the first pieces of business Edu put his name against. After an influential season, they managed to secure him once again for the 2020-21 campaign.
However, the Spaniard didn’t stay after that and has since become a reliable squad option at Real Madrid.
A strong impact, but also a player they missed out on. They probably should’ve pushed for a permanent deal.
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TRY A QUIZ: Can you name every player to appear for Arsenal under Mikel Arteta?
16. Thomas Partey
Arsenal paid £45million for Partey in 2020.
His on-pitch efforts are adequate. For legal reasons, we’ll say nothing more. Probably shouldn’t be on this list at all.
15. Oleksandr Zinchenko
Another one the social media crowd love to be noisy about, £35million to your title rivals for a rotation player obviously doesn’t sound great, but it’s clear that Zinchenko has been an influential player.
Arsenal could’ve spent a lot more and got a much worse player.
The Ukrainian was the first full-back Arteta trusted to invert, but he’s also thrown in a number of howlers and was the unfortunate poster boy of their title collapse in 2023.
14. Mikel Merino
Given that Arsenal were crying out for a goalscoring forward, signing a very tall central midfielder instead was always going to raise questions.
But Merino has played manfully this year, filling in as an emergency forward for half the season and scoring in the famous win over Real Madrid.
The real quiz will be next season, when the Spaniard will be playing in midfield again.
QUIZ: Can you name every Spanish player to appear for Arsenal in the Premier League?
13. Takehiro Tomiyasu
A smart piece of business, Tomiyasuu joined Arsenal from Bologna in 2021 for just shy of £20million as cover at right-back.
He’s become more of a rotation arm these days and has been hampered by injuries, but again he’s a dependable squad player, is extremely versatile and is a very handy defender. A net positive.
12. Riccardo Calafiori
Because snatching one defender from Bologna wasn’t enough, Arsenal could end up paying around £42million for Calafiori if add-ons are fulfilled.
The ridiculously handsome Italian doesn’t just look the part, he is the part.
If he can replicate his Serie A form in the Premier League, and steer clear of injuries, he’ll fly up this ranking in no time.
11. Aaron Ramsdale
Arsenal were criticised when they spent £30million on relegated Ramsdale from Sheffield United in 2021, but it worked – sort of.
The English stopper was an upgrade on Bernd Leno and did allow Arteta to better implement his style of play, but ultimately you get what you pay for and errors began to show that Arsenal outgrew him quickly after a strong first season.
He’s been sold to Southampton for £25million, though, so Arsenal did well to recoup most of the fee.
10. Gabriel Jesus
Hindsight is a wonderful thing, but there is a reason Manchester City were happy to sell Jesus to Arsenal in 2022 for £45million, just after they’d won the Premier League.
Jesus isn’t a bad player – quite the opposite – but if he couldn’t become the main man in a title-winning City side, was he ever going to be that at Arsenal?
He absolutely has his place, but he came at quite the cost and has suffered an unfortunate amount of injuries.
9. Jurrien Timber
The Dutchman signed for £38million in the summer of 2023 and everybody agreed it felt like incredibly smart business for the defender, but things derailed quickly when Timber tore his ACL on his Premier League debut.
He somehow returned before the season ended, coming on as a substitute in Arsenal’s final day win over Everton, and has been vital for the Gunners in his second season.
8. Kai Havertz
There was plenty of criticism over Arsenal’s decision to sign Havertz from Chelsea for £65million, particularly in those early quiet months while took time to adapt and find his place in Arteta’s side.
He’s a bit like Marmite, is Havertz. His many critics aren’t won over just yet.
But while that fee is high, his goalscoring record is respectable. Shame about the amount of high-profile misses that have failed to quieten the fans crying out for a proper No. 9.
7. Jorginho
Hear us out – on a cut-price deal, signing Jorginho mid-season from rivals Chelsea was sensible business.
Arsenal not only weakened a rival, but snatched a vastly experienced player who profiles brilliantly in their team and rotates in perfectly without needing to start every week.
A very shrewd piece of business.
6. Leandro Trossard
Considering Arsenal were poised to sign Mykhailo Mudryk in January 2023, being gazumped by Chelsea and signing Trossard instead was a stroke of fortune.
While Trossard was never meant to be a long-term solution, he came with Premier League experience and an enviable eye for goal.
He has scored 28 goals and provided 21 assists in 121 Arsenal appearances to date and only cost £27million. Bargain.
5. Ben White
White didn’t come cheap, costing Arsenal £50million from Brighton, but he has been worth every penny.
Capable of playing at centre-back, he’s actually unlocked a new level as Arteta’s starting right-back and can be considered one of the best in class.
4. David Raya
With Ramsdale’s limitations beginning to show, Arsenal moved to Raya, who was heading into the final year of his contract at Brentford.
It was a messy deal, but Arteta handled things well. Raya penned a new deal at Brentford, but Arsenal were able to sign him for just £27million.
A strong first season has been repeated in 2024-25 and there is now no doubt that he’s one of the best goalkeepers in Europe. Brilliant work.
QUIZ: Can you name every goalkeeper to play for Arsenal in the Premier League?
3. Martin Odegaard
The Gunners initially lured Odegaard away from Real Madrid on loan in January 2021 and he very quickly showed what he was about.
Arsenal had to do a lot of work to bring him back to the club that summer following a brilliant loan, but the initial £30million they paid has been worth every penny.
Over 190 appearances for the club, 40 goals and 37 assists and counting is a reminder of Odegaard’s quality despite a disappointing 2024-25 season.
2. Declan Rice
For £100million, you’d really hope Rice was this far up the list.
Thankfully, he is. It didn’t take a stroke of genius for Arteta to spot his hidden talent, but he did play a big part in making sure Arsenal won the race for the in-demand midfielder in 2023.
And Rice has repaid his manager’s faith with a string of high-class performances from midfield – and we haven’t even spoken about those free-kicks against Real Madrid…
1. Gabriel Magalhaes
It’s taken a bit of time for him to grow into the role, but Gabriel has come on leaps and bounds since he first signed for Arsenal in 2020.
The Brazilian defender cost the Gunners £27million back then, but it’s now fair to say he’s been worth every penny.
He forms one half of arguably the most solid defensive duo in the world right now and Arsenal have sorely missed him during the final months of 2024-25.