Here is your Arsenal morning digest on Thursday, May 14.
Aubameyang, Lacazette on Napoli shortlist
According to Napoli expert Ciro Venerato, who was speaking to CalcioNapoli24 via Sport Witness, Napoli manager Gennaro Gattuso is extremely keen to sign Lazio centre-forward, Ciro Immobile, who has ripped up Serie A this season with 27 goals in 26 games.
However, Immobile is valued at €100 million and Gattuso may be forced to look elsewhere.
It is said that both Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette are potential targets, with either of the Arsenal pair the ideal Immobile alternative.
Venerato reports that one of the two are likely to leave the Emirates this summer.
With both under precarious contract situations, Aubameyang’s expiring next year and Lacazette’s the year after that, Napoli could come sniffing on a cut-price deal.
Financial expert delivers blow
The extent of the coronavirus is still being understood. However, even if the Premier League’s Project Restart plans for a mid-June resumption are approved, clubs will have gone three months without playing a match.
They will also then have to face the remainder of the season and potentially large portions of next season with games played behind closed doors with no matchday revenue raised as a result.
This is damning for Arsenal, who rely heavily on matchday income.
There will subsequently be less spending in the transfer window, as finance expert Kieran Maguire explained to football.london.
“Apart from the very elite clubs, I think the transfer market will be quite subdued,” Maguire said. “The number of huge transfers are likely to be few and far between because those types of transfers will only arise if you’ve got a club who is in a very strong position as a buyer and a club who is in a very strong position as a seller, so we’re only talking between the elite clubs themselves.
“If you’ve got clubs further down the leagues, they’re going to have to take offers that they wouldn’t have particularly wanted to accept 12 months ago but for cash flow reasons, you might have had a player go for £60milion 12 months ago who will be going for half of that this summer simply because those are market forces.”
What is Arteta’s best starting XI?
If and when the Premier League returns to action, Arsenal face a mad rush to sneak into the Champions League qualification positions.
At present, the Gunners sit in ninth position. However, they are only five points behind fifth-placed Manchester United and have a game in hand, though that is an away trip to Manchester City.
Mikel Arteta had inspired major improvement in the team prior to the postponement of play. Arsenal had not lost in the Premier League in 2020 and their only league defeat under Arteta’s guidance came against Chelsea in a match they dominated.
And so, with European football on the line, what might Arteta’s best starting XI be?
James Benge discussed this topic for football.london.
He highlighted the difficult decision Arteta must make at centre-back as he searches for the partner to David Luiz, the return of key players from injury, including Kieran Tierney and Lucas Torreira, and what that means for those playing in their stead, and considers the various offensive options currently on hand.
