The Gunners have signed many a star player over the years; they've also brought in some absolute duds.
Here, we take a look back through the worst acquisitions in the North London club's history.
7. Auston Trusty
INGLEWOOD, CALIFORNIA - JULY 26: Auston Trusty of Arsenal applauds the fans after the Pre-Season Friendly match between Arsenal and FC Barcelona at SoFi Stadium on July 26, 2023 in Inglewood, California.
Auston Trusty was at Arsenal for 18 months – and never made a single appearance for the Gunners, initially remaining on loan with Philadelphia Union, then spending the 2022/23 season with Birmingham City of the Championship.
As such, including the American centre-back – who joined Sheffield United in the summer of 2023 – on this list might seem harsh, but paying a fee – however small – for a player who doesn't see a minute of action hardly constitutes a successful transfer.
6. Alex Runar Runarsson
WOLVERHAMPTON, ENGLAND - FEBRUARY 02: Runar Alex Runarsson of Arsenal during the Premier League match between Wolverhampton Wanderers and Arsenal at Molineux on February 2, 2021 in Wolverhampton, United Kingdom. Sporting stadiums around the UK remain under strict restrictions due to the Coronavirus Pandemic as Government social distancing laws prohibit fans inside venues resulting in games being played behind closed doors.
Icelandic international Alex Runar Runarsson joined Arsenal from French outfit Dijon in 2020 as goalkeeping back-up – and it soon became clear that he wasn't going to be challenging for the number one spot.
His calamitous Carabao Cup quarter-final performance against Manchester City did anything but endear him to Gunners fans, and a string of loan spells away from the Emirates Stadium followed.
5. Kim Kallstrom
LONDON, ENGLAND - APRIL 15: Kim Kallstrom of Arsenal during the match between Arsenal and West Ham United in the Barclays Premier League at Emirates Stadium on April 15, 2014 in London, England.
Kim Kallstrom's penalty in a shootout against Wigan Athletic put Arsenal through to the 2014 FA Cup final.
But that was as good as it got for the Sweden legend during his short stint in North London on loan from Spartak Moscow: he was left out of the squad for the Gunners' victory over Hull City in that final at Wembley, making a grand total of four appearances for the club.Julio Baptista
London, UNITED KINGDOM: Arsenal's Julio Baptista of Brazil celebrates after scoring against Reading during their Premiership game at Emirates Stadium in London, 03 March 2007. AFP PHOTO / JOHN D MCHUGH Mobile and websire use of domestic englisg football pictures subject to a subscription of a license with Football Association Premier League (FAPL) tel: +44 207 2981656. For newspapers where the football content of the printed and electronic versions are identical, no license is necessary.
Another player who had a four-goal night at Anfield but otherwise made scant impact for Arsenal, Julio Baptista arrived on a season-long loan from Real Madrid in the summer of 2006.
The sizeable Brazilian forward found the net more times in the Gunners' 6-3 League Cup quarter-final thrashing of Liverpool than he did in 24 Premier League outings over the course of the 2006/07 campaign.
4. Lucas Perez
LONDON, ENGLAND - MARCH 07: Lucas Perez of Arsenal during the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 second leg match between Arsenal FC and FC Bayern Muenchen at Emirates Stadium on March 7, 2017 in London, United Kingdom.
Arsenal's £17.1m outlay to sign Lucas Perez from Deportivo La Coruna in the summer of 2016 suggested that they had high hopes for the Spanish forward.
Unfortunately for Arsene Wenger and co, he didn't live up to expectations – making just two Premier League starts before returning to Deportivo on loan the following the summer then joining West Ham permanently 12 months later.
3. Carl Jenkinson
BLACKPOOL, ENGLAND - JANUARY 05: Carl Jenkinson of Arsenal during the FA Cup Third Round match between Blackpool and Arsenal at Bloomfield Road on January 5, 2019 in Blackpool, United Kingdom.
Signed from Charlton Athletic having made just nine senior appearances for the then League One club, Carl Jenkinson was an Arsenal player for eight years without ever truly establishing himself.
The right-back did win an England cap while a Gunner, but he spent much of his time in North London out on loan at West Ham and Birmingham City. He was sold to Nottingham Forest in 2019Clive Allen
1980: Portrait of Clive Allen of Arsenal.
Clive Allen is a Tottenham legend – but the 1986/87 PFA Player of the Year played for Arsenal early in his career... sort of.
Signed from QPR for £1.25m in the summer of 1980, Allen became the most expensive teenager in world football – but he never made a competitive appearance for the Gunners, who offloaded him to Crystal Palace the same summer in a swap deal for future captain Kenny Sansom.
2. Nicolas Pepe
LONDON, ENGLAND - JULY 26: Nicolas Pepe of Arsenal during the Premier League match between Arsenal FC and Watford FC at Emirates Stadium on July 26, 2020 in London, England
Arsenal's record signing until the 2023 arrival of Declan Rice, Nicolas Pepe joined the Gunners from Lille for £72m in August 2019 – and proved to be probably the most expensive mistake in the club's history.
Brilliance was expected of the Ivory Coast winger – but, despite scoring 16 goals in all competitions during the 2020/21 campaign, he showed it in all-too-fleeting flashes, eventually departing for Trabzonspor on a free transfer in September 2023.
1. Shkrodan Mustafi
LONDON, ENGLAND - DECEMBER 03: (BILD ZEITUNG OUT) Shkodran Mustafi of Arsenal controls the ball during the UEFA Europa League Group B stage match between Arsenal FC and Rapid Wien at Emirates Stadium on December 3, 2020 in London, United Kingdom. Sporting stadiums around the UK remain under strict restrictions due to the Coronavirus Pandemic as Government social distancing laws prohibit fans inside venues resulting in games being played behind closed doors.
Ask Arsenal fans how Shkrodan Mustafi made more than 150 appearances for the Gunners and they'll probably struggle to answer – but the German international was a regular at the back for three seasons after arriving at the Emirates Stadium in August 2016.
Costly error's defined Mustafi's stay in North London and, after having his contract terminated by mutual consent in February 2021, he joined Bundesliga outfit Schalke – and played a part in their first relegation for 33 years. Awkward...
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