Report: Arsenal star closing in on 17m summer exit
Report: Arsenal star closing in on 17m summer exitLeandro Trossard to Besiktas: Arsenal forward closes in on summer exitArsenal are moving towards the sale of Leandro Trossard, with The Athletic reporting that Besiktas have agreed a deal worth 20million (17.1m, $22.9m) for the Belgium international. The structure is clear enough, an 18m fee with a further 2m in add-ons, and that tells you plenty. Arsenal value the player, but they also understand the moment.Trossard is 31, he has one year left on his Arsenal contract, and the club are looking at an asset whose value only drops from here. Sentiment matters to supporters, but clubs that want to stay at the top do not let these situations drift. Personal terms are still being worked through, with wages up to around 9m, and the transfer is not yet completed.Photo IMAGOTrossard deal makes financial senseThere is no need to overcomplicate it. Arsenal signed Trossard from Brighton in January 2023 for 27million ($35.8m). He then gave them depth, flexibility and production across multiple roles. If they now recover 17.1m for a 31-year-old entering the final year of his deal, that is tidy business.His final full campaign at the Emirates was useful. He made 50 appearances in all competitions, recording eight goals and 11 assists, and started 21 league games as Arsenal won the Premier League title in 2025-26. He also delivered one of the seasons defining moments, an 83rd-minute winner away at West Ham United on May 10. Those are real contributions, not decorative numbers.Belgium form keeps attention on Arsenal exitFor now, the timing is awkward. Trossard is currently at the World Cup with Belgium, where he has started in all four games under Rudi Garcia. He has already scoring twice in the 5-1 group-stage win over New Zealand and added an assist in the 3-2 comeback victory over Senegal. Unsurprisingly, the move is unlikely to progress until after the national teams run in the World Cup ends.His broader Arsenal record stands up well. Trossard made 174 appearances, scored 36 goals and provided 34 assists. He played mainly from the left, sometimes centrally, and usually without fuss. His best scoring year came in 2023-24, when he scored 16 times across the Premier League and Champions League.Our ViewFrom an Arsenal supporters perspective, this one stings a bit because Trossard has been one of those players every good side needs. No drama, no excuses, no drop in application. Just output. He was never the headline act, but he kept turning up in big moments and doing serious work for the team.That is why this feels like a logical deal and an emotional one at the same time. If Arsenal can bank 17.1m now, with only a year effectively left in play, the club are making a cold decision that successful teams often have to make. Fine. But supporters are entitled to recognise what they are losing. They are losing reliability, versatility and a player who understood how to impact matches whether he started or came off the bench.The concern, plainly, is replacement value. You do not replace a player like Trossard only by signing a bigger name. You replace him by ensuring the squad still has intelligence, movement, final-third quality and someone capable of deciding tight matches. Arsenal won the league in 2025-26 because they had contributors all over the pitch. Trossard was one of them.If he does go to Besiktas, he leaves with respect. Supporters will remember the goals, the assists and the sense that when things got tense, he often stayed calm. That matters. It always will.Source: The Athletic
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