Five players Arsenal could sign this summer after quiet January transfer window

It came as little surprise when Arsenal did not make a landmark signing on transfer deadline day.

Mikel Arteta had long since sounded resigned to not adding to his squad in January and it proved to be true. The Gunners were one of 12 teams not to spend money on a transfer fee in the Premier League, with £96million spent in the division.

Arsenal saw youngsters Miguel Azeez, Bradley Ibrahim and Lino Sousa depart the club on permanent deals in addition to seeing Runar Alex Runarsson's deal cancelled before a free transfer to Copenhagen. Khayon Edwards, Zane Monlouis and Charles Sagoe Jr all headed out on loan on the final day of the window too.

Arteta has long acknowledged that his squad is thin and will face a big challenge to compete for the Premier League title. While January did not provide the right opportunities, it seems likely Arsenal will be active in the summer to solve that issue.

The Arsenal boss said earlier this week: “We have one of the thinnest squads in the league, that's for sure. And when you talk about the numbers, especially in certain areas, we are really thin.

"It wasn't possible [to do any January deals] and now we didn't have the capacity to improve the team in the way that we think we want to improve it. So we decided not to do something yet."

The club showed a great deal of ambition in spending around £200million to land Kai Havertz, Jurrien Timber and Declan Rice. That created some pressure under the Premier League's profit and sustainability rules which saw David Raya signed on loan from Brentford as a result.

After a pause in the market in the last month, activity could return in the summer. Mirror Football takes a look at the players Arsenal could sign.

David Raya

The goalkeeper has established himself as the club's No.1 and usurped Aaron Ramsdale from Arsenal's net. Raya is perhaps the obvious candidate for Arteta's first permanent deal.

Having joined on an initial loan, the club have an option to complete a £27m transfer with Brentford for the Spaniard's services. After being confined to the bench for the north London side's opening three Premier League matches, Raya has missed just one since.

Given his prevalence in the side, the shotstopper likely provides an easy move in July without causing more upheaval.

Douglas Luiz

Arsenal could return to a player regularly linked in recent seasons. Douglas Luiz has been a key player for an Aston Villa side challenging at the top of the Premier League after previous interest.

Arsenal saw deadline day bids turned down back in 2022 as Luiz signed a long term deal at Villa Park but the midfielder has continued to impress. While the Brazilian is aware of the stories he is currently focused on Villa.

He said in December: "I am very happy to hear the stories but I am here at Aston Villa. My focus is totally here. I don't spend a lot of time looking at the stories.

"I see them, but I don't focus on that and I'm not looking at it every day. My head is here at Aston Villa."

Martin Zubimendi

Arsenal have big decisions to make over the futures of Thomas Partey and Jorginho this summer. The Ghana international has 18 months remaining on his deal, while former Chelsea midfielder Jorginho's deal runs out at the end of the season.

Arsenal have an option to extend the Italian's deal by a further year but could also be interested in a younger star to challenge and support Declan Rice. Martin Zubimendi could be that option.

The Real Sociedad ace has spent his whole career with the Basque side but drawn interest from the likes of Arsenal and Manchester United. He would perhaps compliment Arsenal's longer term options well.

Ivan Toney

Ivan Toney remains at Brentford for the rest of the season after returning from his ban, and is likely to be watched carefully by a number of teams ahead of the summer. Arsenal and Chelsea have both lacked an entirely convincing out-and-out striker this term and could be tempted to splash the cash.

The Bees will drive a hard bargain however and a figure of £80m has already been touted. A more versatile forward may be a more likely avenue for the Gunners to look down but an impressive end to the season from the 27-year-old former Newcastle striker could prove tempting.

Victor Osimhen

If Arsenal are dismayed by the price of Toney, perhaps Osimhen is not the best option to turn to. The Nigeria international already knows the next step in his career, and is two years Toney's junior.

Napoli President Aurelio De Laurentiis has already acknowledged a move to the Premier League could be on the cards in the summer. Despite the forward signing a new deal in January, Osimhen could see a move and holds a release clause worth more than £100m in his contract.

De Laurentiis said: “We already knew it since last summer. The negotiation for the renewal would not have been this long otherwise. We already knew he would go to Real Madrid, Paris Saint-Germain or the Premier League.”