Arsenal left-back Oleksandr Zinchenko could be on his way to AC Milan following Theo Hernandez’s move to Al Hilal.
Hernandez has been a top target for Al Hilal this summer, and Fabrizio Romano reported yesterday that the club have sealed an agreement to sign the France international.
The Rossoneri will receive €25 million (£21.5m) for the deal in the coming days, and the Serie A giants could then step up their pursuit for a new left-back in the transfer market.
In our view, their focus could turn to Zinchenko. Corriere dello Sport reported last month that the £150,000 per week star has been earmarked as the ‘ideal successor’ to Hernandez.
He is ‘prepared’ to reduce his wages by agreeing to a long-term contract. Milan could be willing to pay around €20m (£17.2m) to secure an agreement with the Gunners for the left-back.
The 28-year-old was a key player for the Gunners when he arrived from Manchester City in 2022, but his influence from the starting XI has drastically reduced in the last year.
While Zinchenko has impressed with his inverted runs and quality distribution, clubs have taken advantage of his slower recoveries, particularly on the counter-attack.
Myles Lewis-Skelly and Riccardo Calafiori are now ahead of him in the pecking order for the left-back role. Jurrien Timber has also been preferred over Zinchenko many times.
Having entered the last year of his contract, Arsenal look poised to sanction Zinchenko’s exit. They will have to cut their losses on him, but £17.2m would still represent a decent transfer fee.
Arsenal would ideally want closer to £30m which was paid for his services three years ago. Hopefully, sporting director Andrea Berta can work his magic and negotiate some extra add-ons.
The Gunners are anticipated to part ways with several players to facilitate a bigger spending spree. They have recently received an opening £13m bid from Fenerbahce for Leandro Trossard.
