Tottenham Hotspur are riding high this summer transfer window after spending 185 million pounds combined on Sandro Tonali and Mateus Fernandes to finally beat massive clubs like Manchester United, Arsenal, Manchester City, and Real Madrid to two of the biggest targets on the market and overhaul one of the most pressing squad needs of theirs these last few years.
Spurs cannot be done there, but they have other reasons to be excited. The defense looks great after more big offseason moves, they have found a solution for the present and future in goal in Antonin Kinsky, other key players like Pedro Porro are getting tied to new deals, and Roberto De Zerbi has the club finally believing in a Champions League finish again.
Their positivity is extending to the misery of their rivals, in particular, Arsenal. Despite being the Premier League champions last season, the Gunners are not having a great offseason. They have yet to sign anyone and lost out on Tonali to Spurs, while they sold their best forward from the 2025/26 season, left winger Leandro Trossard, to the Turkish Super Lig.
Arsenal have a William Saliba worry
And now, Arsenal have been hit with their biggest blow yet. According to a report from L'Equipe in France, via now.arsenal, superstar center back William Saliba, who is the Gunners best overall player, will likely need back surgery to resolve a chronic issue that has been ailing him this World Cup, including in the 2-0 defeat to Spain in the semifinals. Saliba would then be expected to miss four to five months to start the 2026/27 Premier League and Champions League seasons.
Tottenham Hotspur don't face Arsenal in the Premier League until Dec. 5 for the first North London Derby, where they will need Roberto De Zerbi to help them exact revenge on the reigning champions who blew them out not once but twice - and under two different coaches in Thomas Frank and Igor Tudor.
William Saliba would probably be back by then if he gets his surgery now and misses four to five months, but if the timeline is closer to five months, then he may not be back until 2027, which means Tottenham would not have to face Arsenal's elite center back until May 1.
While Spurs fans have no love for his partner Gabriel Magalhaes, even the most diehard Tottenham fan has to admit that Saliba is a special player. It stinks to see an opponent go down injured and any athlete hurt, but Saliba does need this back issue resolved - and his absence means points off the table for Arsenal and increases the chances of Tottenham drawing closer to them.
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