There hasn't been much to criticise about Arsenal since Mikel Arteta and Edu arrived in north London but one area they need to improve in is player sales.
It's historically been an area of business the Gunners have struggled to thrive in, selling players below their market value, unable to generate many funds to subsequently spend themselves in the transfer market.
Granit Xhaka departed the Emirates to the tune of just £21.4m last summer while Rob Holding, whatever you think of him, is surely worth more than the measly £4m fee attached to his move to Crystal Palace. Alas, Arsenal have made do. You can hardly say they've spent that money in the market unwisely.
#5 Emmanuel Adebayor
Man City
£25m
#4 Cesc Fabregas
Barcelona
£34m
#3 Alex Iwobi
Everton
£35m
#2 Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain
Liverpool
£35m
#1 Folarin Balogun
Monaco
£38m
That said, the deal surrounding Folarin Balogun's departure has to be celebrated from a business point of view.
Why Arsenal sold Folarin Balogun
Balogun was always a prolific figure at youth level for Arsenal. For the U18s he scored 38 goals in 41 outings. For the U21s, the young striker bagged 37 in 62.
Therefore, when the American-born forward began to thrive out on loan last season it didn't really come as a shock.
Plying his trade with Stade Reims in Ligue 1, the now 22-year-old was simply on fire. Balogun found the net on 22 occasions in 39 outings. For a player who had struggled previously in senior football with Middlesbrough, scoring just three times in 21 games, it was mightily impressive.
However, Balogun wasn't happy to just sit on the bench. He wanted first-team football and with Gabriel Jesus clearly ahead of him in the pecking order was sold for a seismic £38m. It marks a huge success for the Hale End Academy, to bring a player through the ranks to then sell on for a huge fee.
Unfortunately, it hasn't all been sunshine and rainbows for the attacker since departing London on a permanent transfer.
How Folarin Balogun is doing after leaving Arsenal
The striker headed back to France last summer, moving to Monaco where great things were expected of him having thrived in France throughout the 2022/23 campaign.
Sadly, Balogun hasn't hit the same heights during an inconsistent first term in the principality. In 23 games, he has scored six goals and supplied five assists. Those aren't awful numbers, of course, but for someone who was so prolific last season you'd expect better.
Fans wanted the New York City-born star to get a chance in the Arsenal senior squad but it's safe to say they haven't missed him. They do sit top of the Premier League after all.
Such a sale has left some questioning how Edu and Co could generate a similar sum of money. Players like Aaron Ramsdale and Eddie Nketiah have been widely tipped to move away in the summer but there is a left-field option who could be used to generate a hefty payday; Mika Biereth.
Why Arsenal could sell Mika Biereth
Biereth perhaps isn't a name with as much hype attached to it as Balogun's but he's still a supreme looking forward. To suggest he could be sold for anything close to £38m would be a stretch but there is certainly a player in there.
Like Balogun, the 21-year-old, who holds Danish and British citizenship, has been on fire during loan spells away from the club.
The young forward began the campaign in Scotland with Motherwell where six goals and five assists were tallied up in 15 games, coincidentally matching Balogun's total from this season. That temporary move was cut short over the winter with Biereth moving to Sturm Graz in Austria.
He has set the Austrian Bundesliga alight, scoring eight goals in 11 outings for his new club to date. The former Fulham youth product has been particularly impressive in Europe, netting three times in the Europa Conference League.
Appearances
15
11
Minutes
1045'
773'
Goals
6
8
Assists
5
1
If this is a sign of things to come then it'll be exciting to see him develop. Comparisons to both Erling Haaland and Harry Kane should also throw a few million onto any prospective transfer fee.
Speaking to the media a few weeks ago, the Denmark youth international commented: "Like Haaland, all I really care about is scoring goals. If you’d offer me two touches of the ball and two goals I’d take that. For me, it’s all about scoring goals.
“[But] there are different aspects of the game when scoring goals isn’t possible when the ball is deep so then it’s about combining, linking the play, holding the ball up like Kane does. Those are the two different variables on the pitch.”
Whether Arsenal decide to have a look at Biereth in the summer remains to be seen but either way, he will need to prove himself in a league with more quality first, just as Balogun did.
That said, you can't totally knock Austrian football. It was a country where a certain Haaland learnt his trade, notably scoring 29 in 27 for RB Salzburg.
There is a slim chance that Arsenal's rising Hale End star reaches the same illustrious heights but they will no doubt win from his impressive development.
Biereth either becomes a first-team regular or he guarantees them a healthy slice of cash as Balogun did. That doesn't sound too bad, does it?
