Arsenal could now finally sign a £30m captain they held talks with three years ago – He could displace Odegaard in the captain role
When Arsenal opened talks over a deal to sign Orkun Kokcu for £23 million all the way back in the spring of 2020, the Feyenoord starlet was a baby-faced 19-year-old just starting to make his mark in the Dutch top flight.
Three years on, a now-22-year-old Kokcu is the talismanic captain at the heart of Arne Slot’s Eredivisie leaders. The industrial strength superglue which holds this outstanding Feyenoord side together (Daily Mail).
A man who, even from his deep-lying playmaker role, still has 12 goals and three assists in all competitions, the driving force behind stunning victories over the likes of Shakhtar Donetsk and bitter rivals Ajax.
“He has seen the light,” Dutch legend Ronald de Boer says of Kokcu, the Haarlem-born Turkey international silencing his critics while putting concerns over his work rate and physicality behind him (Ziggo Sport).
“You have to make sure you have an athlete’s body. He has that now. You can see from everything that the boy is so comfortable in his own skin. DHe looks incredibly fit.
“That is why he is having such a great season, because he can of course play great football.”
ARSENAL ARE LONG-TIME ADMIRERS OF FEYENOORD CAPTAIN ORKUN KOKCU
Kokcu was once likened to Luka Modric by former Juventus and Liverpool ace Momo Sissoko. Such comparisons do not seem quite so outlandish these days; Kokcu the finest player in the Eredivisie’s finest team.
According to The Sun, the now £30 million-rated Kokcu could be rewarded for his outstanding form with a big-money move to a major European league.
Arsenal remain at the forefront of his growing throng of admirers. And Kokcu would be a signing three years in the making at the Emirates Stadium. But if some had concerns about whether the Feyenoord academy graduate was ready for such a step back in 2020, it’s safe to say those doubts have been dispelled, Kokcu rapidly outgrowing a relatively small pond and ready for choppier waters.
“He is certainly leaving Feyenoord for a very large amount,” De Boer adds. “I think he is also difficult to keep.”
