Arsenal have confirmed the departure of Reiss Nelson, who joins Eredivisie side Feyenoord on a season-long loan deal.
Arsenal have put out an official statement regarding Reiss Nelson’s loan move to Feyenoord. The young winger has joined the Eredivisie giants on a season-long loan deal as Mikel Arteta and Edu continue their squad overhaul.
Nelson’s temporary departure from the Emirates comes in the aftermath of a disappointing 2020/21 campaign that saw him feature in only two Premier League games all season. He was mostly forced to play for the reserve side and has never really managed to fulfil his potential since thriving on loan at Hoffenheim during the 2018/19 campaign.
In the current squad, the Englishman had already fallen behind Emile Smith Rowe, Bukayo Saka, Nicolas Pepe and Gabriel Martinelli in the pecking order. As a result, he has been shipped to Feyenoord on a season-long loan deal, as the winger looks to rejuvenate his career once again by performing well in the Eredivisie.
The Dutch outfit have lost one of their star players in Steven Berghuis this summer, with the winger joining direct rivals Ajax. Newly-appointed head coach Arne Slot has looked towards the Premier League for reinforcements, having brought in Alireza Jahanbaksh from Brighton, in addition to the loan of Nelson.
The Arsenal forward is more likely to be considered as a direct replacement for Berghuis. The 21-year-old also becomes the second winger to leave Arsenal this week, following the footsteps of Willian, who returned to his homeland Brazil to play for Corinthians.
After enduring a difficult start to the campaign with three consecutive losses, it appears Edu and Arteta are looking to start from scratch by loaning out or selling unwanted stars. While the players are being offloaded to logically make way for new signings, the Gunners have not had much luck on that front.
The club had recently expressed the desire to sign Emerson Royal from FC Barcelona, but he appears to be on the verge of joining arch-rival Tottenham. Arsenal had also missed out on their pursuit of several other stars earlier this summer, including Emi Buendia and James Maddison.
Therefore, it will be imperative for the North London giants to make a statement by completing a late swoop for at least one individual this summer. Several outlets suggest Takehiro Tomiyasu to be Arsenal’s most likely addition, but nothing has been officiated as of yet.
