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And so we say goodbye to: Jorginho - Flamengo (end of contract) Marquinhos - Cruzeiro (permanent) Thomas Partey - released (end of contract) Nuno Tavares - Lazio (permanent) Kieran Tierney - Celtic (end of contract) Takehiro Tomiyasu – released Will we miss any of them? Only Partey was a first choice so in footballing terms the answer is no, not really. On squad depth terms Jorginho, and Tierney also could do a reliable job when needed. Tomiyasu was an exceptional defender if not so great going forward. I feel he could still become a regret if he can sort out his injury problems. Tierney was by far the most popular of our leavers, we all loved his attitude, his short sleeves, his darts down the wing to lash in a cross or even score a goal. He will never be forgotten by Arsenal fans, that’s for sure. Can he recreate his career? We all hope so. Celtic and Scotland are a superb platform to keep him in everyone’s eye. Champions League football means big teams will stay aware of him. If he stays free of injury who knows what he can achieve? Let us hope. Am I the only one who will miss Jorginho? Jorginho is a player I always liked and his stats were always excellent, coupled with being a central midfielder he rarely got booked which was unusual. He was excellent at marshalling a team, particularly when defending a lead. He was a great backup, for sure. I will miss him although I suspect some fans will say, meh! He never managed to nail down a place so will never be a fan favourite. But to me, a miss all the same. Will Zubimendi or Merino manage first choice status or do a better job than Jorginho? The jury is out. Tavares and Marquinhos did not seem to be of the standard required, particularly Marquinhos. A bad decision by Edu, possibly down to a Brazilian bias. Tavares at Lazio is still in the spotlight and is young enough to make a dramatic uptick in performances. A Gnabry? We shall see. No Party for Partey It is Partey who is the most complicated. He had what most consider his best season last time out, firefighting, winning the ball, surging forward and being undroppable. He has been plagued with court cases for several seasons now and it seems, if the allegations are true, that he never learned. One thing is certain, if he is convicted Arsenal will be excoriated for not distancing themselves from him, and taking the moral high ground. In football, you are presumed guilty until proven innocent and the constant boos he suffered from every opposing team’s fans meant that they could jump on that high ground. Is it fair? No. We have the presumption of innocence for a very good reason, to try to ensure that the innocent are protected. Kieran Tierney. easily the most popular of our leavers, short sleeves in the snow and a great attitude Make no mistake, though, if another player from an opposing team was facing the same charges , we would boo heartily. Why take a different attitude if he is your own? For certain, none of the booers know whether he is innocent or not and he is entitled to the presumption that he may be. By the same token, none of the Arsenal fans know whether he is innocent or not but they pretend to ignore something that they would heartily join in on if he was on the opposing side. Even if he is innocent Let’s take, for the sake of argument, that he is innocent. He has had to put up with a torrent of abuse everywhere he goes home and away. A football career is short and is difficult while yes, being well paid. But he then wouldn’t deserve all that abuse and an innocent man is being tormented based on the fact that he is a footballer and fans love booing a player. Football fans do it all the time. How many gay men have ever come out in football and that is legal in most countries? They know they will get booed wherever they go. Edu got Marquinhos badly wrong Ryan Giggs was never convicted of the charges against him yet I reckon he will never get a proper job in football again. Everyone makes up their mind about these things and never really change them. They convict people based on the newspapers and the media who give sensationalist accounts in a way that they would never do if it is someone close to them. The truth is, unless you are directly involved, you don't have the information to make up your mind the same as the judge and jury do. And we have to assume that if someone is not convicted, they could well be innocent and should be treated as such. Yes, people get away with things, but to counter that how many people get convicted and even executed while being innocent? Caught between Scylla and Charybdis My point is that this is not harmless banter that football fans indulge in, but a destructive tendency that destroys the lives of not just the person accused but also their families. Can Tavares be the new Gnabry? So, where now for Partey? If the case collapses will someone take him on? I suspect that maybe only Ghana might consider him. Of course, if convicted he will get a long sentence and at 32 his football career will be over. As I have said, for me, I do not know what evidence there is and I am only left with the presumption of innocence. Arteta insists that Arsenal have followed the correct procedures and yet, in football, and indeed, anyone in the public eye nearly always get taken out while allegations surface. Ryan Giggs lost his job with Wales before the case was dropped as have so many others. In theory, if a case is dropped, people should be allowed go back to their normal life but in the public eye, fed by a sensationalist media, the accused have got away with it and are entitled to receive continuing excoriation and a difficulty with finding work. Is it fair, no? And our chances of a major trophy go? And whither Arsenal now if Partey is convicted? They will be hammered for continuing to play Partey and not letting him go. Arsenal’s moral standing in the world of football will be impaired and Kroenke’s business empire may be diminished as activists try to harm their businesses. Could the scandal affect the Kroenkes? Thomas Partey may well go down as one of the most memorable figures in Arsenal’s history but it could be for infamous reasons. If convicted, there will be repercussions. Arsenal and maybe the Kroenke’s themselves will have to withstand a lot of media and fan pressure that would have been avoided if they had suspended or withdrew Partey when the allegations first surfaced. This pressure could well have an effect on the field. Maybe we would have to say goodbye (again) to our chances of a major trophy. As it is impossible to know Arsenal’s reasons in doing what we should be doing, upholding the presumption of innocence, it could lead us into a scandal that could hurt us. I can hear the fans now right at the start of games: “Same old Arsenal, always cheating”. Thomas Partey might end up as the most significant leaver we have ever had.