Arsenal's most expensive players of all time

After finishing second in the Premier League last season and losing the title to Manchester City in the penultimate month, Arsenal have looked to strengthen their squad in certain areas and increase the squad depth. In order to do so, they've reportedly prepared a budget of over £200m to spend on buying players who have good physicality and have the composure to play in Arteta's system. With Havertz being already announced as an Arsenal player and Declan Rice being set to come to the Emirates, Arsenal have already broke the bank and it's just the first week of July. So we take a look at some other most expensive players for whom Arsenal have paid a fortune.

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Most Expensive Players

Arsenal is not known as the club who spend fortunes on players but over the years they've exceeded the fans's expectations and spent big money on marquee players. 

Mesut Özil

Mesut Özil was Arsenal's first big money signing which caught the headlines. In the September of 2013, The German signed for the Gunners from Real Madrid for a whopping £42.5m. It was a then-club record signing.

At the time, Özil became the third most expensive signings in British Football history and was also one of the most expensive players ever. It was a statement signing for the club and Özil did work his magic in the red and white shirt for many years before he left the club and went to Fenerbahçe in 2021.

Thomas Partey

The Ghanaian midfielder signed for the Gunners from the Spanish side, Atletico Madrid on Deadline day of the transfer window in the month of October. Arsenal paid £45m for him, activating the release clause set by Atletico Madrid. 

He was under Arsenal's radar for quite some time then and because Mikel Arteta was in need for a defensive midfielder who was as dynamic as Thomas Partey the price went a little too high for the Gunners and it was the last day of the transfer window. But Arteta was very confident about him being successful at the club due to his qualities.

Gabriel Jesus

Gabriel signed for Arsenal in 2022 from Manchester City. He was one of the main targets of Arteta's in that year who he thought was the perfect player to rebuild the team around. Arsenal was in a search for a striker after Aubameyang and Lacazette both left in that year. Arsenal paid £45m for the Brazilian forward in order to fill up the No. 9 position.

He was the most expensive player for Arsenal in that season. He was crucial to Arteta's process of taking the club where it used to belong. He was crucial in the 2022 season for the Gunners but unfortunately picked up an injury in the World Cup and missed a couple of months because of that.

Ben White

The former Brighton defender joined Arsenal from the Seagulls in the summer transfer window of 2021. Arsenal signed Ben White for £50m with a 5-year-deal contract to his name. He was Arsenal's top target that summer and was on Arteta and Edu's radar for quite some time then.

Especially after England call-up his price inflated very much and because he was Arsenal's priority that summer they paid Brighton the price which secured the signing of Ben White. At the time, Arsenal were desperate for a central defender and it reflected on their signing of Ben White.

Alexandre Lacazette

Arsenal signed the French forward from Lyon. Alexandre Lacazette cost Arsenal £52m which was also a club record deal at the time. He signed for Arsenal in July before pre-season and joined the team at Sydney during the pre-season tour in Australia.

He had a great partnership with then club captain, Aubameyang and the two strikers  created great havoc in the opposition box.  One of the main reasons Arsène Wenger signed him was his efficiency in front of the goal.

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang

After weeks of negotiations, Arsenal agreed to sign Aubameyang from Dortmund for £60m. He was Arsenal's top target that January transfer window in 2018 and then the Gunners made him one of the most expensive players of all time. 

He's Arsenal's second highest all-time goalscorer and in his first full season he had also won the Premier League Golden Boot. So it's fair to say that he did justify the price Arsenal paid for him. He was also made Arsenal's captain. And then in 2022 he left the club and went to Barcelona.

Kai Havertz

The German international is the lastest addition to Arsenal's squad. He just finished his medical and is ready to play for Arsenal. He came to Arsenal for a whopping £65m from the Blues, Arsenal's direct London rivals.

He's yet to prove his worth in the Premier League and justify his price tag as he's coming with a lot of mixed reputations. Havertz is said to be crucial in Arteta's plan of making Arsenal successful and we all are very eager to see how Arteta uses him and in which position.

Nicolas Pépé

As Declan Rice has officially not become an Arsenal player yet, Nicolas Pépé still holds the record of being Arsenal's most expensive player of all time. Arsenal paid a total of £72m for him. The Ivory Coast player still is the costliest Arsenal transfer business to this date. He came to The Emirates from the French league, where he used to play for Lille.

Out of all the expensive transfer windows, Pépé is the only player who haven't played to it's potential. His time at Arsenal was not fairly remarkable and is often frowned upon. The amount of money Arsenal paid for him, and the way the deal was structured, he should've done better for the team but unfortunately he couldn't and he was loaned back to the French league to Nice.