Those who have been sent out of loan by Mikel Arteta this season have endured mixed fortunes away from the Emirates
The loan market has proved to be a useful tool for Arsenal over the years, and that trend has continued since Mikel Arteta was appointed head coach, with the most notable, recent success story being that of William Saliba.
With no regular place in Arteta's rotation available, the defender enjoyed successive loan spells at Nice and Marseille. During his time back in France, he rapidly developed into one of Ligue 1's best centre-backs and he has only got better since returning to north London at the beginning of last season.
Folarin Balogun looked set to follow a similar path to first-team stardom after starring for Reims last season, but the United States striker instead opted to depart permanently, raising a cool £26m ($31.6m) for the Gunners' transfer coffers this summer when he joined Monaco.
Not everyone can enjoy this meteoric rise via the loan market, of course, but Arsenal will be hoping that the current crop of players spending 2023-24 away from their parent club can return with a significantly bolstered reputation.
The Gunners loan army is spread across the continent, so you might have been struggling to keep track of how everyone is getting on. Fortunately, GOAL has been analysing how each player has done so far…
Getty Images9Marquinhos (Nantes & Fluminense) – 2/10 ⬇️
After an inconsequential spell at Norwich City last season, the Brazilian was set to spend 2023-24 with Ligue 1 side Nantes. But he seriously struggled to break into the first team, making just seven appearances before his loan spell was cut short in January.
He has since moved to Fluminense, with an option to buy included in the deal. So far, he's done little to convince the Brazilian side to make this switch permanent, with the winger featuring just once from the bench since his move.
AdvertisementGetty Images8Nuno Tavares (Nottingham Forest) – 3/10 ↔️
Tavares' time at the City Ground has been punctuated by poorly-timed injuries. After some impressive cameos at the beginning of the season, his maiden Forest start against Manchester City was cut short by a knock, and he then fell badly out of favour under Steve Cooper.
He finally returned to the fray under Nuno Espirito Santo in January and looked good, if a little bit raw. However, once again, an injury has curtailed his momentum. He'll have a tough job displacing Ola Aina from the side when the pair are both fit again, too.
Overall, Tavares seems set for a season of stagnation, following a pretty promising spell at Marseille last year.
Getty Images7Omar Rekik (Wigan Athletic & Servette) – 5/10 ⬇️
Being dropped into a crisis club on loan was always going to be a challenge, and so it proved for Rekik at cash-strapped Wigan. The Tunisian was on the end of a 4-1 thrashing at the hands of Bristol Rovers in just his third game, before he and the team recovered under the management of Shaun Maloney. A four-match unbeaten run in the first team was only halted by injury in November – and that sadly would prove to be the end of Rekik's story in Lancashire.
He wouldn't feature for the Latics again and was loaned out to Swiss side Servette in the New Year. There was a buy option inserted in that agreement too, suggesting his Arsenal career is set to come to a close soon.
Getty Images6Charlie Patino (Swansea City) – 5.5/10 ⬇️
Touted as a future first-team star in north London, Patino created plenty of buzz with his performances for Swansea during the early stages of the season. But more recently, he has found himself watching on from the bench more often than not. Since Luke Williams took over as Swans manager in January, Patino has not started a single Championship game, with the former Notts County boss citing concerns over his lack of physical strength.
"At the top level of the Championship the physicality is just mind-blowing. I think this is probably the toughest thing for Charlie at the moment. But I think if the team plays with control more and controls the game with the ball more, Charlie’s going to be exceptional. He has a way into the team. There’s no doubt," Williams said recently.
Whether Patino can force his way back into contention before the end of the season remains to be seen, however.