Here are your Arsenal evening headlines for Tuesday August 25.
Arteta targets Soumare
Mikel Arteta is targeting another Lille star along with centre-half Gabriel Magalhaes – midfielder Boubakary Soumare.
That’s according to Foot Mercado , who report that the Arsenal boss sees the 21-year-old as an alternative to Thomas Partey.
Should both deals go through, Soumare will be the third Lille player to head to the Emirates in the last 18 months – after the Gunners broke their transfer record to sign Nicolas Pepe from them last year.
Agent speaks as Magalhaes completes medical
Gabriel Magalhaes has headed to London Colney to complete his medical, and his agent has finally spoken about the factors that persuaded him to sign for the Gunners.
“Arsenal was nowhere near the best proposal [money wise]. Gabriel chose them over more lucrative offers because Edu convinced us of the project. It’s 100% because of Edu Gaspar and Arteta," he told Freddie Paxton.
Napoli were also chasing him, as were Everton, with Manchester United also linked.
The 22-year-old Brazilian will have to quarantine for two weeks so will miss out on the Community Shield this weekend, and possibly the start of the Premier League season.
Arsenal seeking cash to pay for Partey and Aouar
Midfielders Thomas Partey and Houssem Aouar remain targets for Arsenal this summer.
And if Ainsley Maitland-Niles moves to Wolves as is rumoured, his transfer fee could go some way to funding their arrivals.
Lyon value Aouar at £45million, while Atletico Madrid want £45m for Partey, meaning Maitland-Niles’s fee of £20m would be a helpful cash injection.
The Gunners may decide that both Aouar and Partey are too expensive – and Bayern Munich’s Thiago Alcantara is a cheaper alternative, valued at £27m.
