I feel that I am living in some alternate universe these days. How else can you explain Arsenal agreeing to new deals with the likes of Jack Wilshere and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain?
As if that was not crazy enough I see this quote from Arsene Wenger:
“We have gone through a period where we had restricted potential, financially,” Wenger said. “[That happens] when you move into the new stadium, but we have come over that period and now hopefully can be a bit more convincing [with transfers and contracts].”
What Arsene Wenger seems to be referring too is the new sponsorship deal with Emirates that Arsenal recently signed plus the new TV deal that kicks in next season. These tow deals will generate at least another £60m a year in revenue for Arsenal to spend.
Now Wenger will not have all that money to spend on new players. Some of that will be put in the clubs rainy day fund, and some will be used up in higher wages due to the new deals just signed.
But still, Arsene Wenger appears to have a true transfer budget of around £40m a year that he can spend. And that is not a one time transfer budget, but a annual net transfer spend.
There is no doubt that the building of the Emirates Stadium seriously handcuffed Arsene Wenger in the transfer market. But it appears that those handcuffs are about to be removed and it will be interesting to see what types of players Wenger now goes after.