Mikel Arteta and Edu Gaspar can plan for the remainder of Arsenal's summer transfer window in the knowledge that two key deals have been completed and a verbal agreement is in place for another.

Whilst new signings to improve the first-team squad are, of course, important for the Gunners to challenge for the Premier League title once again next season, it's equally imperative to tie down their best players. Already this calendar year, Gabriel Martinelli and Bukayo Saka have put pen to paper on new deals.

William Saliba is expected to follow suit shortly as football.london understands the Frenchman has verbally agreed to sign a new four-year contract, keeping him at the Emirates Stadium until 2027 at the latest and all that remains is for his signature and therefore an official announcement.

With the trio aged either 22 or younger, it is safe to say they will play a huge part in the club's quest for success in the present and in the future, although they all must be registered in Arsenal's 25-man Premier League squad in order to be eligible for the competition next season.

This marks a change from last season when they were classed as 21 or under which allowed them to be part of the separate list. But Under-21 players for the 2023/24 campaign must be born on or after 1 January 2002, Saka, Martinelli and Saliba will be considered 'homegrown' along with Benjamin White, Emile Smith Rowe, Eddie Nketiah, Rob Holding, Aaron Ramsdale, Reiss Nelson, Arthur Okonkwo and Folarin Balogun.

As this ruling will result in a minimum of three new names being registered in the Gunners' Premier League squad for next season, what impact will it have amid talk of an imminent double announcement with regard to Declan Rice and Jurrien Timber joining to push the club's spending past the £200million mark?

Well, Rice would be considered homegrown taking the overall number to 11 but this scenario would only allow for 14 overseas players to be named - usually 17 is the limit - and as things currently stand, the Gunners will have to make space in order to register Timber and two others.

This is because Gabriel Magalhaes, Mohamed Elneny, Gabriel Jesus, Fabio Vieira, Jorginho, Jakub Kiwior, Martin Odegaard, Thomas Partey, Kieran Tierney, Takehiro Tomiyasu, Leandro Trossard, Matt Turner, Granit Xhaka, Oleksandr Zinchenko, new signing Kai Havertz, Runar Alex Runarsson, Cedric Soares, Nuno Tavares, Auston Trusty, Albert Sambi Lokonga, Nicolas Pepe fall into the overseas players' category.

Having said that, Arsenal have already begun the process of avoiding a squad registration issue as football.london understands Xhaka, Balogun, Pepe and Trusty are all expected to depart this summer as could Okonkwo, Runarsson, Cedric, Tavares and Lokonga with regular first-team football by no means a guarantee next season.

So assuming Rice and Timber sign but the aforementioned nine players are let go, the Gunners would be left with nine homegrown and 15 overseas players thus successfully adhering to the Premier League rules when permitted to name a 25-man squad when the summer transfer window closes at the beginning of September.

[football.london]