In what was arguably the signing of the summer, Cristiano Ronaldo returned to Old Trafford following a 13-year absence from the club.
Unsurprisingly, the Portuguese superstar has already hit the ground running since re-signing, scoring four goals in just three appearances so far.
Although he is now 36, Ronaldo is still one of the best players in the world, and with him leading the line, United are genuine title contenders this season.
Meanwhile, Romelu Lukaku, who has transformed into one of the best strikers around in recent years, also returned to former club Chelsea this summer.
His presence up front has given the Blues something extra in attack as Thomas Tuchel’s side look set to rival United, as well as Manchester City and Liverpool for the Premier League.
Arsenal fans were of course once treated to seeing Thierry Henry re-sign on a short-term loan several years ago, but with stars like Ronaldo and Lukaku returning for potentially a few years, it does make you wonder if there are any former Gunners out there who could help improve Mikel Arteta’s team.
With that in mind, let’s take a quick look at a few of the options.
Serge Gnabry
The most obvious option is Gnabry.
Even though he was once deemed “not at the level” of West Brom by Tony Pulis, Gnabry has gone onto become one of the most feared wingers in the world and a serial winner at Bayern Munich.
Whilst he is contracted with the Bundesliga giants until 2023, he is yet to sign an extension at the club and has left things open to interpretation.
Speaking to Sport 1 at the beginning of September, he said: “I feel very comfortable at Bayern, but I still have a bit of time left in my contract. Let’s see what happens.”
And if he ever does think about returning to England, Gunners fans can be encouraged by the fact that he admitted to CBS Sports in November 2020 that Arsenal would be his favoured destination.
Alexis Sanchez
Sanchez has reportedly been told that he can leave Inter Milan.
The Chile international was a popular figure at the Emirates Stadium prior to joining Premier League rivals Manchester United in the 2018 January transfer window.
According to Inter Live, the Nerazzuri are desperate to get rid of Sanchez in an attempt to cut down their wage bill as the 32-year-old is reportedly on around £115,000-a-week.
The report adds that he would even be willing to take a pay-cut to get a move elsewhere.
Re-signing him at his age would certainly be a risk, and some fans are probably unlikely to forgive him for leaving in the first place.
However, given that he is arguably the most exciting player to play for the Gunners in the last decade, it may be a risk worth taking.
Jack Wilshere
(Image: Photo by Paul Gilham/Getty Images)
Most Arsenal fans would love Wilshere to return on a pay-to-play contract if the club would permit it.
As a result of his injury-stricken career, the 29-year-old is a free agent at the moment and is looking for a new club.
Mikel Arteta is open to the idea of Wilshere returning to training at London Colney, but a contract seems unlikely.
Nevertheless, here’s what the Spaniard said about the midfielder earlier this month: “We are in conversations with Jack to understand what he needs, what he is looking for,” said Arteta.
“It’s a person and a player who has a huge admiration around everybody, not just the players or fans, but all the staff around here and we are willing to help him as much as we possibly can.
“He knows that and that’s the situation.”
Donyell Malen
Although Malen has just signed for Borussia Dortmund, the former Arsenal youth product is still just 22-years-old and has his entire career ahead of him.
The Gunners were interested in taking him back to the Emirates during his PSV days, and as he is still so young, there’s always the chance that he’ll come back at a later stage in his career, like Lukaku has done with Chelsea.