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‘Extremely talented’ Arsenal player says he doesn’t want to come back after Mikel Arteta loaned him out

Shamanth Jayaram

Thu 6 February 2025 21:15, UK

Arsenal have sent quite a few players out on loan this season.

The Gunners have a thin squad, but Mikel Arteta has never been a big fan of keeping players at the club just for the sake of it.

A total of six first-team players were sent out on loan by Arsenal last summer, while there are several more from the academy who are enjoying spells away from the club.

One senior player has now all but ruled out a return to Arsenal.

Arsenal loanee Albert Sambi Lokonga says he wants to stay at Sevilla

Arsenal signed Albert Sambi Lokonga from Anderlecht in the summer of 2021.

The Belgium midfielder was viewed as a huge talent. He showed a lot of promise in his home country, so much so that Vincent Kompany compared Lokonga to Yaya Toure.

Arteta trusted Lokonga and gave him several opportunities when Thomas Partey was injured in the 2021/22 season, and the midfielder played really well early on. Michael Thomas even hailed him as an ‘extremely talented’ player ().

However, his form dipped in the second half of the campaign, and that cost him a place at Arsenal.

Arteta sent the 25-year-old on a season-long loan to Sevilla last summer, and Lokonga suggested then that he wants his spell in Spain to last for several years.

Now, the Belgian has doubled down on that claim and said that he wants to stay there beyond the end of his current loan spell.

Lokonga said in a press conference, as per : “I feel very good. I’m growing. I feel better with each game. After leaving Anderlecht, Sevilla is the club where I feel very, very good.

“I want to stay but it’s not just my decision. It’s early days and we’ll see each other at the end of the year.”

READ MORE: Albert Sambi Lokonga appears to aim subtle dig at Arsenal after signing for Sevilla on loan

How much money Arsenal are set to make if Sevilla sign Lokonga

Arsenal signed Lokonga for £17 million in 2021.

That seemed like good value at the time because of the Belgian’s talent and potential, but things just haven’t worked out for him in recent years.

When the Gunners sent Lokonga out on loan to Sevilla, an option-to-buy clause was included in the agreement. The Spanish side can sign him for just £10 million in the summer.

If they take up that option, Arsenal will retain a 25 per cent sell-on clause, which could help them pocket a decent figure if Lokonga fulfils his potential and earns a big move one day.