Arsenal remain in the hunt for one more player this summer after kicking off their Premier League season with a win over Manchester United.
Arsenal are open to adding another player to their squad before the September 1 transfer deadline but they will need to sell players before being able to afford it.
The Gunners have eyed an addition to their left-wing throughout the summer after adding the likes of Martin Zubimendi, Viktor Gyokeres and Noni Madueke to bolster different areas across the pitch.
They have raised very little through player sales, however, with several stars leaving on free transfers will permanent exits for Marquinhos and Nuno Tavares have brought in less than £7m. The North London club have several players they wish to offload but as things stand they have been unable to agree for the likes of Jakub Kiwior, Oleksandr Zinchenko and Fabio Vieira.
None of those players, along with several others, were named on the bench for the 1-0 win over Manchester United while Leandro Trossard is another player they are willing to sell but he was part of the squad at Old Trafford. He did not get any minutes, however.
One player consistently linked with a move to Arsenal this summer is Real Madrid winger, Rodrygo. However, both potential title rivals in Manchester City and Liverpool are also interested.
Pep Guardiola’s side are said to be preparing an offer in the region of £86m for Rodrygo, it has been reported by Caught Offside, however competition for the player has been branded as “fierce” with Liverpool and Arsenal both still interested.
The bid, which has not yet been submitted, from City is said to be an initial £69m with a further £17m in add-ons. Rodrygo first joined Real Madrid in July 2019 and has since played 270 times for the Spanish giants. He has 119 goal contributions in that time with 68 goals and 51 assists.
However, he is facing a possible exit after he started just one game of six games at the Club World Cup under new manager Xabi Alonso. He was an unused substitute for three other fixtures. In the other two games, he was brought off the bench but only totalled 28 minutes of football across both of those appearances.
The arrival of Rodrygo would give a huge new dimension and added threat to the Gunners’ attack. Viktor Gyokeres made his competitive debut fo the club on Sunday against Manchester United.
Reflecting on his performance, Arteta said: “He did a lot of things very good. You can tell, especially in our high pressing, the rhythm that we demand, especially in the first half, we’re giving a bit too much time. It’s something that we have to work on, especially there.
“And then in the finalising situation, he didn’t have that many chances to do that because, as I said, on the previous action before we had to play that last ball that the line was standing still with 40 metres behind, we managed to put the ball through to exploit his quality. But overall, coming away to Manchester United, winning your first game with Arsenal, it’s a good start.”
