What is actually happening at Arsenal?

The trio that look set to leave Arsenal.

I remember back in the day when Arsenal were on course for the quadruple. The Carling Cup final against Birmingham City was a chance to add some silverware to a trophy case that had been baron for almost six years. Arsene Wengers side rightfully went into the game as favourites and, despite Nikola Zigic giving City the lead, Dutchman Robin van Persie levelled matters just over ten minutes later.

The second half was a fairly balanced affair between the two sides as both cautiously pressed for the winner. It looked as though the match was heading for extra time before a monumental lack of communication between Arsenal duo Wojciech Szczesny and Laurent Koscielny allowed former Newcastle United striker Obafemi Martins to pounce with an 89th minute winner. That loss began the catastrophic fall from grace for the Gunners.

The North London side followed up this defeat by bowing out of the Champions League to eventual winners Barcelona, despite a 2-1 win in the first leg, and a 2-0 loss to Manchester United in the sixth round of the FA Cup. All of a sudden, an unprecedented quadruple turned into a treble, quickly shifting to a double and in the space of 13 days, all Arsenal had to play for was the Premiership. However, despite remaining in and around the top three for the first half of the season, their end of season form left a lot to be desired.

The last 12 games of the season saw the club pick up 15 points in total while their final six games of the season saw them finish 17th in the form guide as Bolton Wanderers, Carling Cup victors Birmingham City and West Ham United had worse form than theirs. It has been an all too familiar story for Arsenal in recent years. Like Icarus flying too close to the sun, Arsenal and their fans begin to get ahead of themselves talking up potential success and being the Premier Leagues' greatest side. That record has been on repeat for six years now.

Arsenal fans are becoming very tetchy about the lack of silverware citing Wenger's cautious spending plans as the reason why success hasn't been enjoyed in the red half of North London since 2005 when the club were still plying their trade at Highbury. The players are also, reportedly, beginning to have questioned their future at the Emirates with a lack of silverware now beginning to play on the some of the stars' minds.

The trio that look set to be leaving Arsenal are Samir Nasri, Gael Clichy and Cesc Fabregas. The Fabregas saga involving Barcelona has been doing the rounds for two years and this summer looks set to be the one where the protracted cycle is complete. Having captained the side in recent years, the Spanish international will be the hardest to replace should he depart North London this summer.

Clichy is another who has been widely tipped to leave the Emirates this transfer window following the Frenchman's reluctance to sign a new contract with Arsenal and reports suggest he is a on the brink of a move to Manchester City. However, the Wenger has a ready-made replacement with Kieran Gibbs excelling in the position when called upon.

In regards to Nasri, the French international insisted this morning that his ambition to win trophies was the sole purpose for wanting to leave Arsenal, not the £110,000 per week he was demanding months ago when the reports of his contract began to surface. Both Manchester sides are vying for his signature while Chelsea, should they fail to land Tottenham Hotspur's Luka Modric, will undoubtedly make their move for the midfielder.

The real question that is raised should these three be sold is that what will happen to Arsenal? It is a similar story to that of rivals Tottenham who are eager to hold onto their star duo of Modric and Gareth Bale. The backpages of Sundays papers suggested that Van Persie was ready to hand in a transfer request should Fabregas and Nasri be sold citing a lack of ambition by the Gunners.

The sale of Fabregas, according to reports, will be the reason why the Dutchman could be following his team-mate out of Arsenal and, should worst come to worst, fans of the club could be on the brink of a mass exodus at the Emirates stadium.

Wenger needs to pull off some big name signings in the coming weeks in order to convince the big-name players to remain loyal to his team but with the Frenchman reluctant to utilise his transfer war chest, it may be too little too late for the Arsenal manager.

Anyway, I have got to go.

Laters,

Macca