‘Deal is imminent’: Arsenal are now just ‘final millions’ away from letting £40m dribbler leave- Romano
Arsenal’s £28-rated star is ‘expected’ to move to the Bundesliga.
Arsenal midfield ace Granit Xhaka’s transfer to Bundesliga outfit Bayer Leverkusen is now ‘expected to happen’, Sky Sports reporter Dharmesh Sheth has told GIVEMESPORT.
Mikel Arteta will need to ensure to have plans in place before fully sanctioning a deal, however, to ensure it does not leave them short-changed in the centre of the park.
Arsenal transfer news – Granit Xhaka
Xhaka’s switch to Germany is understood to be a foregone conclusion, with Fabrizio Romano revealing in May that personal terms of a four-year deal had almost been agreed.
Valued at £28m by Transfermarkt, 90min revealed last month that the 30-year-old had backed away from contract talks as an exit was already the view
WhoScored’s statistics show that Xhaka racked up 14 goal involvements this season and ranked sixth in the club’s average match rating rank, despite rubbing shoulders with some of the league’s brightest stars
Sheth has claimed that Bayer Leverkusen is likely to be his eventual destination, but Arsenal’s head coach is reluctant to sanction a sale until replacements are in hand.
What did Dharmesh Sheth say about Arsenal and Granit Xhaka?
He told GIVEMESPORT: “Just on Xhaka, I think Bayer Leverkusen remain optimistic tat they can get that deal done. But as I mentioned, Arsenal just want to make sure that they’ve for everything in place, at least one or two midfielders before they fully sanction that deal, but you’d expect that one to happen. I think Xhaka has got a year left on his contract plus a year option
“He’s 30 years old. What kind of deal would Arsenal have for a 30-year-old? Probably not more than a one or two-year contract whereas I think he could potentially get a four-year contract with Leverkusen, so you can see the attraction and why he would want to make that move now for a degree of certainty for the rest of his career.”
Who could Arsenal sign to replace Granit Xhaka?
The Gunners and, in particular, Mikel Arteta now face a crucial summer as they look to bolster their depth upon their return to the Champions League.
Xhaka’s prime replacement would be West Ham captain Declan Rice, who Arsenal have had on their radar – alongside cross-city rivals Chelsea – for some time now.
Per Fbref, Rice made more tackles, blocks and interceptions per 90 than Xhaka in the last season, while his passing accuracy numbers also better the current Arsenal.
Fabrizio Romano has also told GIVEMESPORT that Manchester City’s Ilkay Gundogan is being eyed by the north Londoners after their initial £80million bid for Rice was rejected, according to The Daily Mail.
The former Borussia Dortmund man has been integral to Pep Guardiola not only in City’s treble-winning campaign but during the entirety of his seven-year association.
It’s, therefore, no surprise that 90min have revealed that the Spaniard is not giving up on convincing the 32-year-old to extend his stay in Manchester.
Xhaka has been described as a “revelation” by Arsenal hero Nigel Winterburn, so his loss will be a tough one to take for Arteta and his entourage, but adding a player of Rice or Gundogan’s calibre to the squad will mask any shortfalls of the Switzerland international’s departure.
