Arsenal
Premier League • England
Fabrizio Romano details Arsenal chances of hijacking Chelsea move for Liverpool tormentor
Fabrizio Romano weighed in on eye-catching comments from a Premier League attacker’s agent involving Arsenal, and predicted how any Chelsea approach in January will fare.
Both London clubs are expected to bolster their attacking ranks in 2023. Chelsea are the lowest scorers of any team currently situated in the top half of the Premier League. Their return of 17 goals is three fewer than the next club in line – Manchester United.
The Blues are expected to land Christopher Nkunku for around €70m next summer, though that’ll do little to aid their top four pursuit this season.
Arsenal, meanwhile, have loftier ambitions. They’re five points clear of Man City in second and have positioned themselves as genuine title contenders.
Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli have been near-unplayable on the wings, though that’s not stopped Mikel Arteta eyeing a new addition.
Arsenal don’t want to run their two young fliers into the ground, and as such, are targeting a ready-made winger in January.
Shakhtar Donetsk’s Mykhaylo Mudryk is the name most frequently touted, though reportedly has an eye-catching new asking price.
A different name recently indexed to Arsenal and who is also on Chelsea’s radar is Leandro Trossard.
Brighton’s tricky winger, 27, is in the form of his life this year with seven goals and three assists registered in 14 league appearances.
He bagged a memorable hat-trick against Liverpool at Anfield earlier this season, becoming only the third opposing player to do so in the Premier League era. The others were Coventry City’s Peter Ndlovu in 1995 and Arsenal’s Andrey Arshavin in 2009.
His agent, Josy Comhair, recently piqued Arsenal fans’ interest when claiming the Gunners pushed hard to sign Trossard back in 2019.
Arsenal reps travelled to Belgium four times – Trossard agent
“Potter came to Brussels especially for Leandro. With an extensive Power Point presentation to convince him. He absolutely wanted him,” Comhair told HUMO.
“There were other options. In the same period, I had several conversations with Arsenal. They came to Belgium four times.
“I’ll give you a note: most players would have chosen Arsenal. But what would have happened if Leandro didn’t get to play? Then there is only one way out: to take a step back. People don’t realise what that does in someone’s head.
“I know Leandro: bench him three times and he goes wild. So, we turned it around: if he does well at Brighton, he doesn’t have to back down, he can take a step forward (grins). Didn’t we get it right?”
That’s sparked talk Arsenal could reignite their prior pursuit. Indeed, Trossard would fit the profile of attacker they’re looking for, is proven in the Premier League, and talked up a move up the table in October.
Chelsea, meanwhile, have been tipped to forge a reunion between Trossard and Potter.
The Belgian is valued around the £30m mark and could provide the Blues with the fresh impetus they need to reignite their top four hopes. FourFourTwo previously reported talks over such a deal have already begun.
Now, via Caught Offside, transfer guru Fabrizio Romano has weighed in on Trossard’s future.
Romano dispels Arsenal story; Chelsea news not positive either
Firstly, Romano moved to quash any speculation Arsenal might hijack a Chelsea move for Trossard. However, the news on Chelsea’s end wasn’t any more positive either.
“Leandro Trossard’s agent has been speaking about holding talks with Arsenal a few years ago, and this has inevitably attracted a lot of interest,” Romano said.
“This might not come across in the agent’s interview, but it was nothing serious – it’s normal for agents of talented players to have many conversations with top clubs around Europe and that’s what happened. It was never an advanced negotiation with Arsenal.
“Trossard is now performing great for Brighton. I think he’s very good player but I don’t see him leaving in January.”
If Trossard is to leave the AMEX in 2023, it sounds like it won’t be until the summer.
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