Transfer insider Dean Jones has provided an update on Arsenal’s pursuit of Inter forward Lautaro Martinez.
The Argentinian forward is coming off the back of two great seasons in Milan, the most recent of which saw him score 17 goals in Serie A as Inter won their first league title in 11 seasons.
With the Gunners looking to bounce back from a disappointing campaign, Mikel Arteta’s men are reportedly taking an interest in signing him, with Martinez himself reportedly keen on a move to the Emirates Stadium if Inter allow him to leave.
And despite the fact that Martinez would be taking a bit of a step down when it came to his career by moving from the Champions League to a team not in Europe at all, speaking on The Football Terrace’s The Done Deal Show, Jones seemed to think that the deal had a chance of going through, but there’s a big hurdle that needs to be crossed first:
“I spoke to someone involved in the deal yesterday, and they just said the clubs are still talking, this is a deal that’s there to be done. Obviously, by saying that this deal’s there to be done means that Arsenal have to meet the valuation, and that’s where the big sticking point is, really. They’re looking at €80m, which is about £65m.
“At the moment, the reason that Arsenal are in pole position for him is because they basically have a free run at him. There hasn’t been any other contact with other clubs for Lautaro Martinez. And personally, I think Lautaro Martinez should be playing at Man City or somewhere, he’s so good, but those clubs aren’t in for him at the moment. It’s not to say they won’t come in, but there hasn’t been anything so far.”
TIF Thoughts on Dean Jones’ comments about Lautaro Martinez and Arsenal…
Should Arsenal sell Lacazette?
Yes!
No!
It certainly would be a major scoop if Arsenal were to be able to pick up someone with his goalscoring pedigree.
They might have to pay a little bit more for him in terms of wages to make up for the fact that they won’t be in Europe next season, but if they can pull it off, then it really would send a message out that Arsenal are serious about their summer rebuild.
But at that sort of asking price, they might have to get drastic when it comes to players moving out of the club. There have been claims of them getting desperate in their attempts to sell Alexandre Lacazette, but if they keep lowering the asking price, that just means they’d risk having to sell another player to afford Martinez.
It should be interesting to see whether or not the Gunners will be able to pull this deal off, and just how much they are forced to sacrifice if they end up making it a reality.
In other news: ‘Spoke to somebody last night close to James Maddison’ – Journalist drops Arsenal transfer claim