Arsenal are seemingly closing in on one target, with the price tag to secure his services having now been revealed.
What’s the latest on Sacha Boey to Arsenal?
Turkish journalist Nevzat Dindar has claimed on his YouTube channel that the Gunners had seen a £14.7m bid made and subsequently rejected for Galatasaray’s Sacha Boey.
Th Frenchman has enjoyed a standout year at right-back, and with Mikel Arteta evidently keen to offer Ben White some viable competition, this youngster could be that man.
Having failed in their initial pursuit, the journalist would go on to reveal that the Turkish giants are holding out for £21m with Galatasaray’s vice-president Erden Timur reportedly travelling to London to discuss the potential move.
How good is Sacha Boey?
Although a relative unknown across Europe, the consistently impressive showings of the 22-year-old have led to more and more people sitting up and taking note. Journalist Zach Lowy even sought to bring him to the attention of others by labelling him an “intriguing prospect” even before his move to Turkey.
His 7.11 average rating for this season (as per Sofascore) is underpinned by numerous impressive statistics, all of which culminate to highlight his reliability. He can defend like an old-school full-back, but is not without the modern capabilities to burst forward and offer influence at the other end of the pitch.
As such, he maintains one key pass, 1.7 interceptions, 2.7 tackles and 2 clearances per game, via Sofascore. His work rate is also not to be ignored, as writer Cetin Cem Yilmaz branded the defender “tireless” earlier this year.
For comparison, should he come in to compete with White, the Englishman has instead only managed 0.7 key passes, 1.6 tackles and 2 clearances per game, via Sofascore.
His performances at full-back are made more impressive given his preference to feature through the centre, though should a natural alternative like Boey come in, it could prove bad news for the man who has appeared in every one of Arsenal’s league games this campaign.
It would be hard to prefer him to the France U20 international, and yet the pairing of Gabriel Magalhaes and William Saliba was almost perfect until the latter was struck down with an injury. Arteta even described them as a “happy marriage” togethe
Given their need to bolster that role, perhaps this bid was intended to push White into a backup role for both positions due to his immense versatilit
Although the 25-year-old has impressed this season, it could be questioned how sustainable his place on the flank is given his lack of attacking impetus that Boey would instead provide. As a classic full-back able to bomb down the wings all game, White simply cannot compete with this given his career has been moulded around defensive solidity. Therefore, this move could spell danger for the former Brighton and Hove Albion stoppery.r.opper.
