It was a hectic summer transfer window at Arsenal.
The north London club brought in six first-team players, spending in excess of £140million on Aaron Ramsdale, Nuno Tavares, Ben White, Takehiro Tomiyasu, Albert Sambi Lokonga and Martin Odegaard.
Technical director Edu also oversaw the permanent departures of Willian and Joe Willock whilst the likes of Hector Bellerin, William Saliba and Reiss Nelson were all sent on loan for the season.
Granit Xhaka, Kieran Tierney and Emile Smith Rowe all penned new contracts with the Gunners but one senior player who didn't sign a new deal was French centre-forward Alexandre Lacazette.
Lacazette 's current contract is due to expire at the end of the season and football.london understands that the former Lyon frontman is likely to leave the Emirates Stadium on a free transfer next summer.
The 30-year-old has struggled for game time this term, failing to start any of Arsenal's seven Premier League games as club captain Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has been preferred through the middle.
Whilst failing to receive any transfer fee for Lacazette may seem like bad business from the Gunners, they will save around £9.4million per year in wages, according to Spotrac.
Getting his reported £180,000 per week contract off the wage bill will allow Edu to be flexible in the transfer next summer as he looks to find a replacement striker.
Lacazette has notched 67 goals and 29 assists across 174 games for the club, providing a goal contribution every 117 minutes since arriving from Les Gones in the summer of 2017.
The likes of Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Ollie Watkins have been mooted as potential replacements for the France international, with Napoli centre-forward Victor Osimhen also linked.
