Fourth Arsenal player leaves on a free as Tomiyasu agrees to contract termination | OneFootball

Arsenal have confirmed that Takehiro Tomiyasu has left the club my mutual consent.

The Japanese defender becomes the fourth Arsenal player to leave the club for free this summer, following the exits of Jorginho, Kieran Tierney and Thomas Partey.

The 26-year-old has spent the last four seasons with Mikel Arteta’s side, after arriving from Bologna for just under £20 million back in 2021.

He was an important player in his first season with the Gunners, starting 20 times in the Premier League. Arsenal narrowly missed out on Champions League football that season, as they finished fifth.

However, as Arteta’s side has progressed, Tomiyasu’s role in it has diminished. In his second and third seasons he made 21 and 22 Premier League appearances respectively. Although he started in just six and ten of those matches. Finally, last season he made just one league appearance.

Tomiyasu has been plagued by injury problems for the past 18 months. A recurring knee issue ruled him out for most of last season and he played just seven Premier League minutes.

His 84th and final Arsenal appearance, and only one of last season, was a short cameo off the bench against Southampton in October.

The full-back still had another 12 months on his contract with an option to extend it for a further year. However, after slipping down the pecking order, falling behind the likes of Jurrien Timber and Ben White, Tomiyasu has agreed to terminate his contract.

The Japanese international was a valuable utility man, capable of playing anywhere in the backline. Despite this, Arteta still has plenty of depth in defence. The Gunners’ focus will remain on bringing in attacking talent in this transfer window.

Arsenal recently announced their first signing of the summer as goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga arrived from Chelsea. As Arteta continues to trim his squad, it can be expected that there will be more new signings to come.