When you are struggling to shift out a host of high-earning, 30-something players, sometimes the best course of action is the most brutal. Arsenal know that better than most.
At the start of the Mikel Arteta rebuilding project, last season’s Premier League runners-up terminated many an eye-watering contract.
Mesut Ozil, Sokratis Papastathopoulos, Shkodran Mustafi, Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Willian, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
They all left the Emirates Stadium as free-agents, Arsenal coming to the conclusion that forgoing a transfer fee would be offset by removing their colossal pay-packets from a vastly-inflated wage bill.
If only the Saudi Pro League rescue package was around back then, hey Arsenal?
But, still, it’s an approach that worked. Arsenal, free from that baggage, set about renewing their squad, bringing in younger, hungrier players in the place of those vetera
Arsenal have transformed their squad under Mikel Arteta
Martin Odegaard now pulls the strings like Ozil used to.
Gabriel Magalhaes is a massive improvement on Sokratis and Mustafi. Leandro Trossard, meanwhile, continues to score with the kind of regularity Mkhitaryan could only dream of.
Over in Italy, Juventus appear to be kick-starting a clear-out of their own.
It is over a month since Tuttosport put forward an extensive list of players with Bianconceri wished to sell. Flash forward to mid-August, and Dean Huijsen and Matias Soule are the only ones who have gone for any money. The former joins Bournemouth, while the latter turned down Leicester City for Roma.
And an increasingly desperate Juventus – unable to tie up a deal for Jean-Clair Todibo with money tight – now appear to be taking the Arsenal approach.
Wojciech Szczesny had his contract terminated on Wednesday afternoon.
Juventus, via their official website, have confirmed that the veteran Poland international will depart the Allianz Stadium on a free after he and the club mutually agreed to tear up his deal.
Juve will only hope some of his well-earning, out-of-favour team-mates can be just as pliable.
Gunners return possible as Juventus release Wojciech Szczesny
But for Szczesny, could a return home be on the cards?
HITC understands that, while Arsenal tend to avoid veteran signings these days, they could make an option for their former number one.
Szczesny is an affordable option to replace Aaron Ramsdale in North London, with David Raya now firmly established as Arteta’s first-choice. Arsenal like Joan Garcia of Espanyol too.
But Szczesny’s title-winning nous – he secured three Scudettos at Juventus – as well as his vocal leadership skills could come in handy in a rather young dressing room. Not to mention his homegrown status.
Szczesny was born in Warsaw but moved to London in 2009 before making his senior debut as an Arsenal player.
There had been interest from the Middle East – Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al-Nassr in particular – but the 34-year-old may yet have a place to play in Europe before hanging up his gloves.
Then again, that depends on whether Ramsdale moves on during the final two weeks of the window.
Newcastle United, Nottingham Forest and Chelsea are among those who have been linked but all three have since signed new goalkeepers.
