Arsenal Women’s summer is no longer just about goodbyes. It is becoming a test of Renee Slegers’ attacking rebuild.
Arseblog News reports that Arsenal are close to deals for Hoffenheim forward Selina Cerci and RB Leipzig winger Lisa Baum. That matters because the forward line has already lost major experience.
Beth Mead has joined Manchester City after leaving Arsenal. The Guardian reported that she signed a three-year deal with the WSL champions.
Victoria Pelova has also moved on. Reuters reported that the Dutch midfielder joined Tottenham after her Arsenal contract expired.
The wider churn is clear. The WSL transfer tracker lists Mead to Manchester City, Pelova to Tottenham and Laia Codina to West Ham among Arsenal’s summer exits.
Read in isolation, Cerci and Baum look like targeted attacking additions. Read against the wider summer, they look more strategic.
Arsenal are trying to restore range, depth and unpredictability before the WSL market fully bites.
Why The Cerci And Baum Profiles Matter
Cerci’s reported appeal is obvious. She is 26, can operate through the centre and can also work from wider areas.
That matters after Mead’s exit. Arsenal have not simply lost goals and final-third craft. They have lost a player who understood when to stretch the pitch and when to combine around the box.
Replacing that with one fixed-position forward would have left Slegers with a narrower squad.
Baum offers the other side of the rebuild. The 19-year-old is a left-footed winger who usually plays from the right. She would bring a development profile rather than another finished senior starter.
That distinction matters. Arsenal do not need every incoming attacker to carry the same immediate load as Alessia Russo, Chloe Kelly or Caitlin Foord.
They need a bench that can change tempo. They also need options who can protect legs and keep internal pressure high.
Cerci would give Arsenal senior forward cover. Baum would give them a younger wide option with long-term upside.
For Slegers, that is a healthier mix than one headline signing.
Pelova Exit Adds A Tactical Layer
Pelova’s departure should not be treated as a side note.
She gave Arsenal ball-carrying, combination play and control in tight areas. Even if Baum is not a direct replacement, she would help restore a left-footed angle from the right side.
That is where the rebuild becomes more interesting. Arsenal are not only replacing names.
They are replacing passing lanes, pressing roles and different types of width.
The summer window also gives Slegers time to reshape the group properly. The WSL transfer tracker already shows a busy market across the division, so early work matters.
There is a lesson from Arsenal’s wider squad management too. ReadArsenal has already looked at how the club’s retained-list reset created space for sharper summer decisions.
The women’s team now need the same thing in reverse. Movement out must be met by sharper movement in.
Slegers Needs Depth, Not Just Star Power
The danger for Arsenal would be trying to answer every departure with a headline name.
That is rarely how elite women’s squads stay balanced. Mead’s exit removes status and experience, but the better question is variety.
Can Arsenal build a forward group that survives Champions League rotation, domestic pressure and injuries?
Cerci and Baum would not finish that job by themselves. They would, however, show that Arsenal are targeting different age bands and attacking functions at once.
For Slegers, that is the real value.
It would also stop the coaching staff leaning too heavily on one solution. Arsenal can use Cerci as a rotation forward. Baum can be developed as a wide threat. The senior core can remain the weekly standard.
That is a better squad-building equation than chasing one marquee replacement.
Arsenal already have proven match-winners. What they need now is a bench that keeps the standard alive when the first-choice attack is stretched.
If the Cerci and Baum deals land, this summer starts to look less like damage control. It starts to look like a deliberate attacking reset.
