Arsenal Tipped to Cull 3 Big Name Stars in Bid to Raise Funds for Summer Transfer Plans

​Arsenal could be on the verge of a summer of change in which Mesut Ozil, Shkodran Mustafi and Henrikh Mkhitaryan are the high earning big name stars tipped to be shown the door.

It has been well established in recent weeks that the Gunners would have just a £40m transfer budget this summer unless they qualified for the Champions League. And, after falling apart in the Premier League and being thrashed in the Europa League final, that won't happen.

It likely means a summer of cuts and raising funds if manager Unai Emery and head of football Raul Sanllehi are to build a new squad capable of challenging for the top four, previously the hallmark of former boss Arsene Wenger, next season.

The latest from the Daily Mirror alleges that Arsenal plan to 'generate funds' by selling 'big name' players, with Ozil, Mustafi and Mkhitaryan all identified as 'potential casualties'.

It doesn't appear that writer John Cross knows this for sure, but Ozil is certainly a reasonable guess given his vast weekly wage of around £350,000 and his rather limited output in return.

The problem that the Gunners will have is finding a club for the 2014 World Cup winner. Unless he is willing to take a drastic pay cut, there are very teams who could afford, or would want to afford, to offer him a contract that is comparable to the very comfortable one he has now. And that means Arsenal may have keep paying for him by subsidising his wages in order to show him the door.

In terms of where they might spend their money this summer, Arsenal have been linked with a number of players in recent weeks and months, including Bournemouth winger Ryan Fraser, Mainz centre-back Jean Philippe Gbamin and Barcelona outcast Andre Gomes.

But the chances of signing of any one of those and having much change from £40m is slim.

Rumoured interest in Crystal Palace winger Wilfried Zaha may have to be forgotten as the Ivory Coast international is known to be seeking Champions League football.

Arsenal had also been heavily linked with Lille star Nicolas Pepe earlier in the season, but his price tag is expected reach in excess of £60m or £70m, ruling the Gunners out of the race.