Arsenal confirm the first departure of the January transfer window as they wish Sead Kolasinac well on his return to Schalke on loan... and Bosnian is set to be the first of many after Mikel Arteta promised more outgoings next month

Arsenal defender Sead Kolasinac has returned to Schalke 04 on a loan deal for the rest of the season, becoming the first of a possible squad cull at the club.

Left-back Kolasinac signed on a free transfer from Schalke in June 2017 and has played 113 times in all competitions since then, scoring five times.

However, he has been limited to just one Premier League match this season due to the strong performances of Kieran Tierney and the versatility of Bukayo Saka and Ainsley Maitland-Niles.

Arsenal tweeted: 'Best wishes for your return to #S04 and good luck for the rest of the season, Seo,' followed by a thumbs up emoji.