Recent days have seen Arsenal grab the headlines by reportedly agreeing a deal to sign Zubimendi, who has a £51million release clause.
The Spanish midfielder would sign now but only arrive in the summer which could open the door for change in Mikel Arteta’s midfield. After all, both Jorginho and Thomas Partey are out of contract in the summer meaning there could be a hole to fill in their squad.
However, ex-Chelsea and Scotland midfielder Burley told ESPN that it may be the 2024 summer signing Mikel Merino who may be allowed to leave.
‘Arsenal are going to have to do something pretty special. I don’t think signing a new striker guarantees anything but it gives them a much better chance.
‘They knew this would probably be the scenario. They knew they didn’t have a natural goalscorer.
‘They went out and signed Mikel Merino and Riccardo Calafiori last summer. They’re good players, but now they’re being linked with a move for Martin Zubimendi in the summer. That would mean Merino going out because Merino is not going to play in front of Zubimendi and Rice.
‘But even if they do bring in a new midfielder, they’re still going to need to address the striker position, that’s the key area.’
On the other hand, Zubimendi and Merino formed a strong partnership for Sociedad during their time together in Spain. In total, they have played together across 165 matches for club and country at differing levels.
That includes the Spanish senior international side as well as the youth set-up and they played together for the first time in the 2018/19 season, earning a 2-1 win for Sociedad against Getafe. Across 165 games, the pair managed 79 wins, 43 draws and 43 defeats.
If both Jorginho and Partey do depart, it would leave Arteta with five players – Zubimendi, Merino, Declan Rice, Martin Odegaard and Ethan Nwaneri – for a typical three-man midfield.
With the future of Gabriel Jesus uncertain after his latest long-term injury and neither Kai Havertz nor Leandro Trossard seemingly capable of leading the line effectively, a striker may be sought out to complete their starting line-up.
Newcastle’s Alexander Isak, Juventus’ Dusan Vhalovic and RB Leipzig’s Benjamin Sesko are three forwards that have been linked and all three would be welcome in Arteta’s attack.
The Athletic’s David Ornstein has since confirmed that Vhalovic and Sesko won’t be achievable for the current January window but hasn’t ruled out a summer move for either player.
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