Who will Arsenal sign next?
The north Londoners, spearheaded by transfer chief Edu Gaspar, have displayed serious intent and ambition this transfer window - spending over £200 million on marquee signings.
Winger Kai Havertz cost Arsenal £65 million with versatile defender Jurrien Timber joining for around £38m from Ajax - but their club-record £105 million deal to sign former West Ham star Declan Rice tops the list.
Rice is now the most expensive English player in history, overtaking both Jack Grealish and Jude Bellingham in that respect, with Edu hailing the club's capture of such an elite midfielder.
“Declan is a player with fantastic ability and a proven record at both club and international levels," said the Brazilian.
"The process of this transfer has been a big team effort with a clear plan, and we are so happy that Declan is joining us. Declan is a high-quality, young international player who will add great strength to our squad, fitting so well into our strategy of competing with young talented players at the centre of our club."
Despite their huge outlay, Arsenal could add further signings to their roster as we enter the final phase of this transfer window. Indeed, last season's title contenders are reportedly in the market for a new keeper to battle it out with Aaron Ramsdale for the number one spot.
Raya, who yet again starred for Brentford last campaign, is a top target with talks ongoing and personal terms already agreed (Fabrizio Romano). Now, all that remains is an agreement between Arsenal and the Bees.
According to 90min, there could soon be some headway made in this regard, as the Gunners are preparing a very good offer for Raya which may near their asking price.Thomas Frank's side have set a £40 million price tag and Arsenal are readying a bid which could "come close" to the fee requested - though this will be made up of significant add-ons.
In a boost for Mikel Arteta, Raya himself is apparently pushing to join them, which may give Arsenal an advantage in negotiations.
How good is David Raya?
The 27-year-old was a mainstay for Brentford over 2022/2023, playing more league minutes than any of his teammates whilst ranking among their best-performers per 90 according to WhoScored.
Bees boss Frank is certainly aware of his goalkeeper's excellent abilities, having praised Raya's "very aggressive" when he received a first call-up to the Spain squad last year.
"His clear and obvious abilities in terms of playing with his feet, high position, very aggressive in terms of his positioning and going for crosses, he definitely deserves this," said Frank.
"He's been on the radar from the Federation of Spain, I'm pleased to see him there. I think it shows definitely a lot of credit to him because there's a lot of good goalkeepers for Spain."
Raya has also been praised by members of the English press as one of Brentford's "exceptional" players over the last few years.
0 Comments