Is there a way back for the Arsenal loan players now there is a new manager in charge?
There are a number of Arsenal loan players but only three that you would consider first-team players. They are Mohamed Elneny. Henrikh Mkhitaryan and William Saliba.
Now, Saliba is different because he is a new signing and the agreement stipulated he goes back to St Etienne for a year. That leaves just Mohamed Elneny and Henrikh Mkhitaryan.
Just today I read a rumour about Mkhitaryan staying at Roma permanently and there is a constant stream of rumours about Elneny as well.
What we know right now is that both players are out on loan until the 30th of June and that is it. We do not know for sure if their loans will be turned into permanent deals. They probably will be but there remains an outside chance either or both could return to the Emirates in the summer.
Imagine if either player has a sensational second half to the season, Arteta may well think that he could do with that player back in his squad.
Additionally, if I was either Elneny or Mkhitaryan I would be looking at the situation at Arsenal and thinking to myself, it could have been different for me if Arteta was in charge when I was at the club.
I accept that we have probably seen the last of Elneny and Mkhitaryan in an Arsenal shirt but football is a weird entity and it is not beyond the imagination that one or both could have their Arsenal careers resurrected.
I mean, look at the difference in Mesut Ozil and David Luiz under Arteta. It seems anything is possible with the Spaniard in charge.