Arsenal could look to solve their left-winger problem by gatecrashing a big Chelsea deal.
Arsenal are hoping that they can win the Premier League title this season. They are expected to battle it out with the likes of Manchester City and Liverpool for top spot. Mikel Arteta’s side have fallen short over recent years.
The London outfit have delved into the market this summer to bring in the likes of Viktor Gyokeres, Martin Zubimendi and Christian Norgaard to bolster their ranks. They have until the deadline on Monday 1st September to get some more deals done. Arteta also has the chance to let some players leave before then as well if needed.
Arsenal have the opportunity to pounce on RB Leipzig star Xavi Simons with Christopher Nkunku’s potential move to Bayern Munich holding up Chelsea’s pursuit of the player, as per reporter Florian Plettenberg on X. He would be ideal for the Gunners if they were able to get him. They could do with another option at the top end of the pitch.
According to the Daily Mail, City could land Arsenal-linked Rodrygo at Real Madrid. In addition, it has been well documented that Tottenham Hotspur are long-term admirers of Crystal Palace gem Eberechi Eze. Therefore, Arteta’s risk being without a key signing in that position.
Simons, who is likely to be available for just over £60m, would significantly boost the Gunners’ ranks. The Netherlands international, who has 28 caps under his belt, would add more quality to their squad. In addition, he would give them something different going forward.
The Amsterdam-born man joined Leipzig on an initial loan deal in 2023 before his transfer was later made permanent. He has since become one of their most prized assets and they face a real battle to keep hold of him at the moment amid attention from elsewhere. The attacking midfielder has has made 76 appearances in all competitions for them to date and has scored 21 goals, 11 of which came in the last campaign.
Simons was on the books at Barcelona as a child before PSG came calling. He then rose up through the academy of the Ligue 1 giants and was a regular for them at various different youth levels before going on to feature on 11 occasions for their first-team. PSV swooped in back in 2022 and he fired 22 goals in 48 matches for the Eredivisie team.
Arsenal have done some great work on the recruitment front over the past couple of months and Simons would be the cherry on top of the cake. It would be a blow if he joined a rival like Chelsea. Therefore, they have to do their upmost to try and get him instead.
Simons should leave Leipzig now for a new challenge in his career. Some of the top players from Germany like Benjamin Sesko and Florian Wirtz have left for England over recent times to test themselves and he should follow suit. The Gunners need players who can get their fans off their seats and he ticks all the boxes.
Arteta’s side dug deep to get all three points against Manchester United in their opening game. It turned out to be a tricky test for them at Old Trafford but they got the job down in the end. They will now be eager to build some momentum over the coming weeks and get a streak of wins going.
They have two more weeks left to conclude any incoming or outgoing bits of business. Anything can happen near the end of the window and there are plenty more twists and turns to come. If they were able to tempt Simons away from Chelsea, that would be a late big statement of intent.
