Sell him before Ben White: Why Arsenal must bin £50m star who’s “Pires-like”

Gary Neville knew immediately what Ben White had done. He may not have been very kind to the Arsenal defender but his experience of a similar incident, as he recalled on his post-game podcast, eluded to a possible MCL injury.

Lo and behold, confirmation arrived on Tuesday that White had indeed sustained a medial collateral ligament injury. As he went in for a challenge with West Ham winger Crysencio Summerville, he left his leg dangling and has now paid the ultimate price.

The full-back has been ruled out for the rest of the season, meaning he will miss the title run in and sit out the biggest game in club football, the Champions League final.

He was unlikely to go to the World Cup but he is also likely to miss the global event in America. It’s a sad end to the season for one of the most respected players at the football club.

What the future holds for Ben White at Arsenal

When White first arrived at Arsenal from Brighton for £50m he did so amid a wave of criticism. £50m for a player with one campaign of top-flight football under his belt was a gamble.

Indeed, it didn’t look like one that was worth taking when he was bullied on debut against Brentford during the Bees’ first match in Premier League history.

That day, the Englishman featured as a centre-back. That was his natural position at the time but with the help of Mikel Arteta, he has become one of the best right-backs in football.

For years, his partnership with Bukayo Saka down the right-hand side was a joy to watch. There were not many better partnerships in the league than that one.

However, the arrival of Jurrien Timber marked a turning point. We did not know it at the time but during 2023/24, the season Timber first joined, White was effectively ran into the ground.

Timber barely kicked a ball due to an ACL injury and with Takehiro Tomiyasu also regularly on the treatment table, it meant White had to play through the pain barrier himself.

It’s something he has paid the price for in recent years. White’s consistency has dwindled, his availability has become less reliable and Timber has surpassed him.

Yet, in recent weeks, he had rediscovered his best form. His fellow right-back had picked up an injury and slowly but surely, Arsenal’s number 4 was back at the top of his game.

If Sunday afternoon marked his last game in the club’s colours, it will be an extremely sad end to his time at the Emirates Stadium. Indeed, the general concensus is that this summer, Arteta and Co will listen to offers. After all, the 28-year-old has started just nine league matches all season.

That said, if he can play like he has in recent weeks, Arsenal must fight to keep him. The same cannot be said for another of the club’s long-serving players.

£40m Arsenal star must be sold before Ben White

Cast your mind back to the season of 2022/23 and everything felt rosy under Arteta. It was the first season where the project finally started to take off.

White and Saka had developed that famous partnership and the forward on display was the best we have ever seen during this era.

Indeed, Saka, Martin Odegaard and Gabriel Martinelli all scored 15 goals, finishing as joint-top scorers for the Gunners. Yet, besides Saka, neither Odegaard or Martinelli have really been able to kick on.

The case of Martinelli is a curious one. Poached from Brazil as a teenager for a £6m fee, that has proven to be a bargain. Yet, considering Jurgen Klopp once described him as a “talent of the century” and Robert Pires said “looks like” him, the forward has not lived up to the immense potential expected from him.

The winger is a regular in the Brazil side and to his credit, he is their joint-second top scorer this term alongside Saka on 11. However, how many of those goals have been meaningful?

Dismally, Martinelli has only scored once in the league this season but it was a vital one at that, netting a precious equaliser against Manchester City that could well prove to be the different between winning the title or not.

However, that run of league form typifies the issue Arsenal have had with Martinelli this season. In Europe and in cup competitions in general, he has been electric. Yet, against the low blocks that Premier League sides deploy against Arteta’s side, he has really struggled.

This is not a new problem either. It’s an issue that’s plagued the 24-year-old for a while now. He scored eight goals in the top-flight last season but only two of them came in his last 13 matches.

Martinelli was off the boil for much of 2025 and the same can be said of his form in 2026. It says it all that in the big moments, against Fulham, Atletico Madrid and West Ham in recent weeks that he has been left on the bench. In fact, the Brazilian has been an unused sub in both of the last two league games.

In comparison, Leandro Trossard has stood up when it matters, registering an assist against the Cottagers and scoring versus West Ham. Sure, the Belgian has struggled for form himself this calendar year, but he usually always pops up in the clutch moments.

Given his age, it would not be a surprise to see Trossard leave this summer. He is now past his prime at 31. Martinelli, however, has sell-on value. Last month it was claimed that he could fetch a £50m fee if the Gunners were to sell him.

That certainly sounds worth it, particularly when Arsenal could pump that cash injection into signing a winger with greater consistency and quality.

Martinelli has dazzled at times in Arsenal colours but the fact of the matter is that we just haven’t seen it on a regular basis. You sense now is finally the time to sell up.