Arsenal’s prospects of landing a midfielder Mikel Arteta loves early in the transfer market have received a substantial boost.
The Premier League’s Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR) will prompt sales early in the window, with Sky Sports reporting that as many as six clubs face selling key players.
This should be music to the ears of Arsenal, who are standing on financially solid ground and will have no such issues.
Instead, they can profit from the trouble of others, with Arteta offered the opportunity to potentially sign one of two long-term targets on the cheap.
Douglas Luiz is a player that Arteta and Arsenal have admired for a long time, and while the path to the Brazilian seemed to have gone a little cold in recent times, Aston Villa are one of the clubs who face falling foul of PSR.
He is the likeliest player to depart Villa given that they will do everything they possibly can to retain Ollie Watkins while Matty Cash, who is linked to AC Milan, will not command the type of fee required to get the club out of trouble.
Two Newcastle possibilities
Perhaps a more tantalising prospect for Arsenal, though, is the possibility of signing Newcastle’s Bruno Guimaraes.
Another Brazil international, FootballTransfers has confirmed the Gunners’ interest in the former Lyon player, though they are insistent that they will not meet a release clause in the player’s contract worth around €117m – the same fee they paid West Ham for Declan Rice.
With the Magpies under pressure to sell, it may be that they have to relent on their stance.
It is also possible the St James’ Park side sell Alexander Isak, who is another player who has interested Arsenal, yet it will be tough for the club to extract full market value for either of these players given their rivals know they are now under pressure to sell.
Both Bruno and Isak, it should be stressed, have both indicated that they want to stay with Newcastle.
Of course, all of this is perfect for Arsenal, who have been given the green light to make either of these two moves aware that Aston Villa and Newcastle are now under pressure to sell.
