Thursday 29 January 2015 11:33 am

Arsenal transfer spend tops £100m and smashes previous record after Gabriel Paulista signing

Gabriel Paulista may not be the most significant signing Arsenal will ever make, but the Brazilian centre-back’s arrival in North London has created a little bit of history for his new club.

After spending roughly £13m on the 24 year-old, Arsenal’s spending for the season has crossed the £100m mark. Never before have the Gunners spent so much in a single campaign.

To be specific, Arsenal have spent £105.2m on just seven players, demolishing their previous record of £57.62m set in the 2011/2012 season.

It doesn’t feel like long ago that Arsenal’s transfer windows were better defined by richer rivals plucking its stars away and chants to “spend some money” sweeping around the Emirates stadium.

With just four days remaining in the January transfer window, Arsenal are the second-biggest spenders behind Manchester City. Having also bought Krystian Bielik for £2.9m their total outlay for the month stands at £15.7m. That also makes it their second-biggest January spend since the window first came into existence 12 seasons ago. In January 2006 Arsenal spent £23.3m on Theo Walcott, Emmanuel Adebayor, Carlos Vela and Abou Diaby.

What will be even more encouraging to Arsenal fans is that none of the big spending has been offset by many big sales. The club’s current net spend for the season stands at £88.7m, once again obliterating the previous record of £34.9m

Why are Arsenal suddenly spending more money? The simple answer is that they have lots more of it.

The Premier League’s latest TV deal, which came into effect last season, saw the club’s broadcast income rise by £36m to £93m per season. The club’s new manufacturing deal with Puma is worth £150m, as is its current deal with sponsor Emirates.

Arsene Wenger put it best when he explained last month:

Those periods we did not spend we did not have the money. What I don’t like is to spend money we haven’t got.

What I fought against is to spend money that would put the future of the club in danger. Now I have money, no problem at all.

For Arsenal fans who have long been infuriated by the club’s perceived lack of transfer activity, this season’s splurge will represent a welcome change in approach.

And yet, many of the old frustrations remain: Arsenal are fifth and have suffered disappointing losses in the league that have set back their season. Dissent is still present in the stands and has manifested itself in unsavoury fashion.

With a 2-0 victory over Manchester City last week, Arsenal seemed to have turned a corner in their approach to games against the top sides. However, the standout performers in that game – Francis Coquelin and Santi Cazorla – have been at the club for a number of seasons.

Back in 2011 when he was questioned about his cautious approach in the transfer market, Wenger replied: “I don’t say that money doesn’t play a part in it, but it’s not only about that. What is the game about then? Football has to be even, interesting, unpredictable.”

Perhaps he had a point after all.

For a look at how Arsenal’s January spend compares to the rest of the league, explore our interactive below.

January Transfer Window

All the deals so far

Now 12 years old, the January transfer window has evolved into one of the most important months
in the football calendar, and the source of frenzied excitement for fans.

Explore our interactive to find out who’s spending big during the window and who’s using the month to make some money.