‘Sign Serge Gnabry!’ – Arsenal tipped to clinch a £21 million deal coup for Raphinha alternative who will fit perfectly into the club
The easiest way to get over potentially missing out on a transfer target is to focus on another, and it’s safe to say that many Arsenal fans are doing just that in light of the latest Raphinha developments.
With three summer signings confirmed in Marquinhos, Fabio Vieira, and Matt Turner, as well as a £45 million deal for Gabriel Jesus to be announced, it appeared the Gunners’ next mission to bolster Mikel Arteta’s attacking options was to reach an agreement with Leeds United for the Brazilian international.
In fact, The Athletic reported last weekend that Arsenal were planning to strengthen their offer for the 25-year-old after seeing an initial bid rejected by the West Yorkshire club – albeit the general belief was that a deal may need parting with £65 million.
However, after having a second bid rejected this week, the Gunners’ ambitions of signing Raphinha were dealt another blow on Tuesday evening, with various sources stating that their London rivals Chelsea had rushed in and are now leading the race to sign the winger.
According to The Athletic, the Blues are close to agreeing on a deal in excess of £55 million with Leeds for Raphinha, while transfer analyst Fabrizio Romano claims the two clubs have agreed on a £60m/£65m fee, with the majority of the entire money to be paid immediately.
Meanwhile, indications in Spain indicate that Barcelona is still very much in the race.
Whatever the case, these developments appear to have condemned a number of Arsenal fans to the likelihood that Raphinha will not be joining the Brazilian contingent at the club this summer, which currently includes Gabriel Martinelli, Gabriel Magalhaes, Marquinhos, and the soon-to-be Gabriel Jesus.
However, based on several Twitter reactions, supporters have concluded that if technical director Edu is unable to clinch a deal for Raphinha, Serge Gnabry must be the new transfer target.
@ASCArsenal said: “Sign Gnabry instead @arsenal. He’s better anyway” and @SimplySmithRowe agreed: “Now we have lost out on Raphinha we need to sign Serge Gnabry he will fit perfectly into the club”.
While the return of Gnabry to the Emirates Stadium would be a dream deal for many fans this summer, The Athletic has already reported that Arsenal have not mentioned the Germany international as an active target due to his likely pay demands.
However, if Arsenal alter their minds and pursue a deal for Gnabry as a result of missing out on Raphinha, they might wind up performing a remarkable £21m masterstroke, according to SportBILD, who reports that the Bayern Munich winger could be available for €40 million (£34 million).
That is on the condition that he does not sign a new deal with the Bundesliga giants, which has just over a year left on it, in order to prevent losing a key player for free next summer. In this scenario, Arsenal could sign Gnabry for £21 million less than Raphinha.
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‘Sign Serge Gnabry!’ – Arsenal tipped to clinch a £21 million deal coup for Raphinha alternative who will fit perfectly into the club
