The Gunners have made a new midfielder one of their top summer targets with reports that Thomas Partey is likely to leave amid interest from clubs in Saudi Arabia.
Declan Rice was a brilliant addition last summer in midfield and one of the signings of the season in the Premier League as Arsenal just missed out on the Premier League title on the final day of the season.
Mikel Arteta and Edu will be looking to repeat their Rice success in the transfer market again with Real Sociedad’s Martin Zubimendi, Everton’s Amadou Onana and Newcastle’s Guimaraes among their reported targets.
And now Football Transfers claims that Newcastle star Guimaraes ‘returned to being a leading target for Arsenal as the Gunners grow frustrated with the lack of response to their wage offer’ to Zubimendi.
Arsenal do not intend to trigger the Brazilian’s release clause but their interest ‘has intensified in recent weeks as they look to do a deal below the £100 million which the Magpies set in his contract last year.’
The report adds that Arsenal intend to make a ‘player-plus-cash offer’ for the midfielder and Newcastle’s ‘financial problems could force them to entertain offers for the maestro’.
The Magpies ‘might be open to such an arrangement given their necessity to balance the books and not get stung by Premier League Profit and Sustainability rules.’
A report earlier this week claimed that Arsenal have made their first approach for Everton midfielder Onana and journalist Charles Watts has brought the latest on a possible deal for the Belgium international.
Watts wrote in his Caught Offside column: “Amadou Onana is a player who has consistently been linked with Arsenal over the past 12 months.
“There were strong reports in January that talks were at an advanced stage, although I was always told that wasn’t the case and that nothing was close to happening at that stage. Whether that changes this summer remains to be seen, but it may be one to keep an eye on.
“We know Arsenal are in the market for at least one midfielder this summer and Onana is one of a number of players they have been monitoring.
“There is a lot to like about him as a player and Arsenal know first hand just how good he can be when he is at his best.
“I’ll always remember his performance against Arsenal at Goodison last year. It was Sean Dyche’s first game in charge of Everton and Onana was absolutely exceptional.
“It was one of the best midfield performances I’ve seen from a player. I was sitting in the press box at Goodison watching him thinking ‘this guy is incredible’. He was absolutely everywhere. He was strong, physical, he was running box to box, winning tackles and driving Everton forward. It was one of those individual performances from a player that just sticks in your mind.
“The thing with Onana, when you talk to people who watch him week in, week out, is that those types of performances are few and far between.
“He can be excellent on his day, but then he can be quite ordinary for a few weeks in a row. And that would be my worry about Arsenal signing him, especially if he were to be the only midfielder to arrive this summer.
“In my opinion, Arsenal need a midfielder who can come in and immediately raise the ceiling of this team and I’m not sure he does that. I think he would be a work in progress, someone Mikel Arteta and his coaching staff would have to really work on to get the best out of him consistently.
“It could be a good market opportunity though. I’m not an expert when it comes to Everton’s financial issues right now, but it seems pretty clear that they are struggling again with PSR issues and a big sale could be needed.
“They clearly don’t want to lose Jarrad Branthwaite, so they could be open to letting Onana go if anyone comes knocking for the Belgian international.
“A price tag of around £50m is being mentioned and that could be appealing to interested clubs given his age and profile.
“It’s one of those market opportunities that could tempt clubs into making a move. Whether that’s Arsenal, however, remains to be seen.”
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