HERE WE GO: Arsenal set to offer Tomiyasu plus £33m CASH to land £60m premier league defender who will bring cover up for injured Jurrien Timber
Arsenal are plotting a contingency plan for the possibility that Gabriel Magalhaes leaves the Emirates Stadium before the summer transfer window closes. The Brazilian defender has attracted interest from Real Madrid, Juventus and Saudi Arabian side Al-Ittihad.
Gabriel has been dropped from the Gunners’ starting XI in the opening three Premier League fixtures of the season after proving to be a stalwart at the back for Mikel Arteta last term. However, the 25-year-old’s absence from the team is understood to be due to tactical reasons rather than as a result of speculation over his future.
Arteta has already admitted it has been hard to leave players out of the team and insisted his full squad will be required ahead of a return to Champions League action. “It’s difficult to leave all the players out,” he said.
“When I see on the bench there are a lot of players who still haven’t played. At the moment though we are once a week, when we are two a week it’s going to be a completely different scenario how we are prepared for that.”
With regards to incomings, Arsenal remain open to opportunities that may arise on deadline day. It will likely come down to who leaves.
When it comes to the team’s defence, Arteta has stated that the Gunners will have to adapt by using the versatility of his squad members should the aforementioned players leave. That’s not to say they will not still look to bring someone in, though.
According to the Daily Mail, Arsenal could target the Crystal Palace star Marc Guehi if Gabriel does leave the club. football.london reported in May that Guehi was among the players being considered by the Gunners this summer.
Reports stated earlier this year that Palace would look to fetch a fee in the region of £50million for their star defender. Roy Hodgson’s side would be inclined to demand a much higher fee for the 23-year-old at this stage of the transfer window given how little time there is left for the Eagles to find a replacement.
Arsenal want to keep Gabriel, but there is still time for things to change as we edge towards deadline day.
Asked if Gabriel’s exclusion from the starting XI is linked to reports of his pending exit, Arteta said: “Nothing at all. It’s about the games that we were expecting, what I was expecting, how we wanted to defend and attack and our belief it was the best thing.
“He’s played in both games, he’s helped us to win both games for different reasons. He was really good today [vs Palace], he absolutely dominated the box. He’s going to play a lot of games. That’s the decision sometimes.”
