Few Monday morning links..... - Seeing claims that Edu is monitoring 22yo Ajax GK Diant Ramaj. Supposedly we have had an eye on him since he was in Frankfurt's youth system. Based on what I've read, he is described as a younger, taller Raya..... aggressive on crosses & strong distribution. - We are once again being linked to Adrien Rabiot. Supposedly Barca, ManU and Arsenal are talking to him about a FA contract this summer. These rumors have been around for a few weeks and I have mostly written them off but I could see us having some interest if (a) our 1st choice DM signing falls through or (b) Jorge doesn't sign an extension. - For the last week, I have been seeing links to 18yo Juventus ST Kenan Yildiz. He is a 6'1" F9/SS type of player who is in his first year in the Juventus 1st team. Not recording a ton of stats yet but has been making waves with his general play and has worked himself into the starting lineup since Xmas. Supposedly Juventus isn't willing to let him go for anything under 60m euro. - If we opt to go for a CF/ST this this summer we could be competing with Milan for a couple of our supposed targets. Claims from Italy suggest that Milan have stepped up their interest in Zirkzee & Sesko as possible replacement for Giroud.
Ajax just bought him last summer for €5m and transfermarkt says he has a 15% sell-on clause to Frankfurt. I want them to spend as little as possible on backup keeper so they make a profit from selling Ramsdale and can invest that money elsewhere in the squad. Pass on Rabiot. €60m is a lot for an 18yo. Don't like a bidding war, but I would think Arsenal can win on wages against Milan. I read recently that a tax benefit available in Italy was canceled and players will now pay normal income tax rates, which makes it harder for them to sign players.
Tchouameni has been playing CB for Madrid lately, wonder how happy he is with that situation? Camavinga signed a new contract, can't see him leaving, sadly. De Jong is a long shot but I don't think it's impossible. Wages are the issue, he recently denied that he makes €40m a year. I think he wants to leave but wants to be paid, Barca want to keep him but on lower wages. Maybe a loan where Arsenal pick up €300k/week and Barca cover the rest, with an obligation to buy next summer (2025) when he only has one year left on his deal?
Don't see Camavinga happening. He seems all-in on Real. Wasn't aware that Tchouameni was playing CB. Would also be curious how he feels about that. Also curious how he would fit with Arteta. He's been ripped in Spanish media about his inconsistency but his WhoScored rating is 7.1+ whenever he starts. For reference, that is similar to Rice. Real paid 80m for him and TM says that he is currently worth 90m. Would be a pricey transfer. I saw something a couple weeks ago and blew it off at the time but the claim was that de Jong's reported salary was incorrect and that he was actually on between 200-300k/wk
He's said the right things publicly but you got to wonder how that will impact his place in the France squad.
Interesting new link this morning..... Spanish media claims that we are one of a handful of EPL clubs interested in 22yo Sociedad RW Take Kubo. Currently has a 60m euro release clause. Lately Sociedad has veen unwilling to sell below RC, however Real Madrid have a buyback on him as well and some expect Real may trigger it to sell him if there is legit interest. Take would qualify as a "left-footed Trossard". He primarily plays RW but has also played LW, AM & ST in the last 2-3 seasons.
Loses some credibility talking about Toney. Been others claiming he isn't on our radar and I have a hard time seeing us spend a ton on a 28yo coming of a sports betting suspension. Arsenal will move to sign a new central striker this summer, with Ivan Toney, Victor Osimhen, Joshua Zirkzee and Viktor Gyokeres among those the Gunners have looked at. [@SamiMokbel81_DM Mail]— AfcVIP⁴⁹ (@VipArsenal) February 27, 2024 Also have my doubts about us targeting 3 higher end signings. I'd bet 2 (DM/CM + ST/W) and then maybe some prospects. Arsenal will also look to sign a new central midfielder with Martin Zubimendi among the club’s targets.An out-and-out winger to supplement Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli will also be considered. https://t.co/42iuDnFyeR— AfcVIP⁴⁹ (@VipArsenal) February 27, 2024 That however may push the envelop for a ST 🚑Arsenal will manage Gabriel Jesus through the season finale to avoid further flare-ups of his persistent knee problems. Arsenal medics are taking a cautious approach to his workload to ensure the ongoing knee complaint doesn’t worsen. [@SamiMokbel81_DM Mail]— AfcVIP⁴⁹ (@VipArsenal) February 27, 2024
Would take him in a heart beat. He has also been deployed up top. He's one of Europe's brightest talents.
"Also have my doubts about us targeting 3 higher end signings. I'd bet 2 (DM/CM + ST/W) and then maybe some prospects." I agree. Those are the two areas that I think Arsenal will focus on. For CM, there's been a lot of talk on Zubimendi, but, while I like him, I think that puts Rice in a less than ideal position as L8. I'd much rather they continue their pursuit of Barella for the L8. I think he'd be ideal there for Arsenal. For striker, it depends on if Arteta wants a similar striker to Jesus. If so, we could go for Viktor or Zirkzee. If we want a tip of the spear striker, like Haaland, then we could go for Sesko or Vlahovic. I don't think we'll have a shot at Osimhen with PSG looking to replace the goals from Mbappe
he's only scored 6 in almost 30 app this season. looks to be a very good prospect but not ready to lead the line for a UCL squad and not worth the price of admissions as a backup.
Sales are going to dictate a lot of this. Ideally they sell Ramsdale for enough to cover the cost of Raya plus a new backup. Sell Tierney, Tavares, Sambi, and Partey for what they can get. Cedric and Elneny's wages come off the books. They can offset the cost of a new striker with selling Nketiah. I think they should only spend big if the right player is available. I wouldn't over spend on Gyokeres or Vlahovic, so a younger, cheaper option could be the way to go. CM/DM is where the right player is needed and should be the top target, even if it is pricey. Then depending on how much is spent at striker, maybe enough is left over for a really pacey wing. Could be funded with an ESR sale. Arsecast talked about Zinchenko as a potential "surprise" sale, which could fund a new defender if Arteta is looking to change tactics.
I won't argue with you but I think unloading guys is extremely likely. Looking just at the list of guys that were on loan (and likely to be sold) and guys that could play but didn't (injury or not good enough)..... Ramsdale Cedric (free) Kiwior (mixed messages on his future) Tierney Nuno El Neny (free) Partey ESR Vieira Sambi Eddie Nelson Now it is unlikely that all of the above are sold and we would need depth replacements for many of them. Outside of Kiwior's recent run, there is not a single guy on that list that had a big impact this season. - At a minimum, Cedric & El Neny are gone. - After that you ideally need to sell Rams, KT, Nuno & Sambi. KT will be at a loss. Hopefully the others are atleast a small profit. If that is all you do, you are basically looking at bringing in a new #2 GK, completing the Raya deal and maybe 2-3 cheap depth guys and the overall impact on your roster is a wash at worst. - Next up is Partey. We all want him gone. Transfer fee will be a big loss but atleast his salary (5th highest on team) will be off the books. - Kiwior likely stays given his recent run but he could push his way out if he wants guaranteed starts - everyone else (ESR, Vieira, Eddie & Nelson) are guys that you should consider either a sale or loan. Vieira would be hard to recover his fee. He either needs more rotation next season or should be loaned for more playing time. The academy guys should all fetch a solid fee and would represent 100% profit. Eddie is the most likely to go but ESR or Nelson wouldn't surprise me either if the offer was good enough. And while this group didn't contribute a ton this season, this is the group (outside of Rams & Kiwior) that would need to be replaced as they atleast provided roster depth.
He signed in 2019 for £25m, so I assume his cost has been fully amortized over those 5 years. So anything they get, which won't be much, can still count as profit.
Agreed. We should be able to get at least $100m in sales in the summer. We have a lot of fringe players that we just need to sell off.
The only problem is we say this every year. "Conservatively, Arsenal should be able to make X in sales.". Then sales end up at half of X, if that. Hopefully Edu is turning a corner and is able to sell players that are desired by other clubs for good value, and not just the misfit toys he's been unloading the last few years. Ramsdale could be key, need Newcastle to have enough PSR/FFP flexibility to bid against Chelsea. Partey could get a nice fee if he can be convinced to go to KSA.
Random thoughts on this summer window...... Maybe for the DM/CM role we should consider a late 20s option that could make an immediate impact. Few interesting options..... Adrien Rabiot (29) - I know most on here don't care for him but he will be a free agent and he is have a very strong season in a L8 role. Could also be an option for #6 rotation as well. Mikel Merino (27) - Are we looking at the wrong Sociedad MF? Excellent size and ridiculous numbers (fbref) as a L8 for an underperforming team. TM values him at 50m but his contract expires in 2025. Could we get a solid deal this summer? Joshua Kimmich (29) - Seeing rumors that he is looking for a change in scenery. Capable of playing DM, CM & inverted RB. 2025 contract but would the price be too high for a near 30yo? Mid 20s options with 2025 expiring contract..... Youssouf Fofana (25) - More of a physical defender than any of our current MF. Is he a good enough passer? Can he play as a single pivot? Kephram Thuram (22) - More of a pure b2b. Likes to dribble more than pass. Is he gonna hold out to be a FA like his brother? Others that could be interesting with 2024 or 2025 expiring contracts..... Mario Hermoso (28) - FA this summer. Seen rumors to Inter & Aston Villa lately. Not the best defensive CB but has very good passing & dribbling. Has played LB in the past. Could he be a solid LB option for us? Arnau Martinez (21) - Young RB with solid p90 stats in rotation. Would be a backup/development option that could pay big dividends if he reaches potential Jonathan David (24) - Linked to him previously. Stats have fallen off this season due to a switch in tactics (ST in 4-2-3-1 vs SS in 4-4-2) but still scoring more than everyone on our team not named Saka. Strikes me as a younger Jesus with a little better finishing. This is his first season (so far) of his career with a negative Gls-xG (currently -0.9)
Ra All of these players, imo, should be put on the block. The below values are from transfermarkt. I understand that they aren't always accurate. Sometimes players go for less, others go for more. There has been documented interest in every one of these players over the past year. Even if we reduced the value of each of these by 5, we'd still clear 100m. Ramsdale - 28 Kieran - 18 Nuno - 16 ESR - 25 Nketiah - 35 Lokonga - 12 Nelson - 15 Partey - 25 Viera - 28
Late 20s CMs The Rabiot rumors have been around for years. It hasn’t happened yet, so I’m skeptical and I’m not particularly interested in his addition. Re Kimmich: Rabiot is also near 30 and Kimmich is a better and more versatile player. Again I don’t want Rabiot, but Kimmich would be interesting. Merino is another player Arsenal have been linked with in the past. I think Zubimendi is the better option and he reportedly has a reasonable release clause. BTW. Selling All of Ramsdale, Nelson, ESR, and Nketiah would reduce the homegrown contingent on the current roster to 6 players, with one, Hein, out of contract in June, and would force Arsenal to promote from the academy, buy young, or buy English.
Everything I have read is 60m euro release on Zubimendi. And supposedly he won't agree to leave unless his release is triggered.