The Arsenal summer exodus began with the English Premier League club announcing the departures of Andrey Arshavin, Denilson and Sebastien Squillaci when their contract expires at the end of the month.
All three players have been surplus to requirements at Arsenal for quite a while now, with Denilson spending the last couple of seasons on loan at Brazilian club Sao Paulo.
While the Brazilian midfielder's contract was not up until 2014, both parties decided to rescind the final year on his deal to allow the player to leave on a free transfer in the summer.
Denilson actually had a couple of decent seasons with Arsenal, particularly in the 2008-09 campaign, where he made an appearance in all but one game in the Premier League.
The 25-year-old, who joined Arsenal from Sao Paulo in 2006, made 153 appearances in all for the club.
Arshavin was the biggest disappointment among the trio, having been brought in during the January transfer window of 2009.
He was Arsenal's record signing and was on a high salary, but unfortunately failed to live up to the expectations despite a bright start to life in the Premier League, which included that unforgettable four-goal effort against Liverpool.
Squillaci also failed to make his mark after signing from Sevilla in 2010, and leaves the club after spending three rather forgettable years.
The crucial aspect of the release is the fact that Arsenal have now freed up close to £10 million ($15.5 million) in salary, leaving Arsene Wenger with even more money to spend in the summer transfer window.
If Arsenal can negotiate the departures of Johan Djourou, Nicklas Bendtner and Marouane Chamakh as well, then the club will be freed of the deadweight that has crippled their wage budget for the last couple of years.
The socialist wage structure clearly has not worked for the Gunners and Wenger and co. will be keen to move on from the disastrous signings and salaries and start a new era at the club.
Wenger is expected to finally make a few big-money signings this summer, with the likes of Stevan Jovetic, Gonzalo Higuain and Wayne Rooney, to just name a few, linked heavily with moves to the club.
Only time will tell, if big money will be spent by the club in the summer, or if the board yet again gobbles up a tidy little sum for themselves at the fans' expense.
