Two Arsenal players likely to leave the club after missing out on the Community Shield team
Arsenal are likely to say goodbye to two players this summer who didn’t travel to Cardiff for today’s Community Shield final against Manchester City.
Mikel Arteta’s team won the match comfortably, beating Manchester City 3-0 at the Principality Stadium in Wales. Riccardo Calafiori and Kai Havertz scored in the first half, and Martin Odegaard added another in the second to secure the win for Arsenal.
New signing Christos Tzolis, who joined in July for about £35 million from Club Brugge, helped out with two assists from the wing. Some big names like Declan Rice, Bukayo Saka, Viktor Gyokeres, and Eberechi Eze started on the bench, while Bruno Guimaraes got a starting spot in midfield after joining Arsenal in August.
Although Manchester City had more possession and took more shots, Arsenal created four clear goal chances compared to their one. With such a strong squad, it’s not surprising Arsenal feel ready to let go of the two players who didn’t make the trip to Cardiff and are expected to leave this summer.
Gabriel Martinelli and Ethan Nwaneri are the ones set to depart. Martinelli was important last season, playing 30 times and helping Arsenal win the Premier League. Nwaneri made history as the youngest player ever in the Premier League, though Max Dowman is now being preferred.
Martinelli scored 62 goals in 278 games, and Nwaneri has 10 senior goals since joining the first team in 2022-23. Reports say both could be heading to Turkey’s Super Lig, with Galatasaray interested in signing them.
Galatasaray, last season’s Turkish champions, are chasing a fifth straight title but face new competition from big signings like Mohamed Salah, Romelu Lukaku, and Leandro Trossard at other clubs. Martinelli recently turned down a nearly £40 million offer from Galatasaray, which would have been a club record transfer for them.
It’s unclear if Martinelli might move somewhere else beyond Turkey, but both he and Nwaneri seem to be finishing their time at Arsenal. Whether that’s their own choice or the club’s decision isn’t clear yet.
After today’s victory, Arsenal have extended their record as the team with the most Community Shield wins, now at 18. They start the 2026-27 season on a high note, though the Gunners have never managed to keep their Premier League title two seasons in a row.