Arsenal
Premier League • England
Arsenal transfers: Arteta won’t stop at Declan Rice capture as Gunners ‘insistently’ pursuing Tottenham target
Reports in Turkey claim Arsenal are still keen to sign Galatasaray defender Victor Nelsson this summer but face stiff competition from Tottenham.
The Gunners have already made one significant purchase with Kai Havertz lured to the Emirates. The north Londoners paid Chelsea in the region of £65m for the 24-year-old Germany international. However, that transfer fee looks set to be dwarfed by the numbers involved with the signing of Declan Rice.
Arsenal are on the cusp of paying around £100m for the West Ham and England midfielder.
That would be the club’s record signing but they still might not be done.
They were linked with Nelsson last month when it became apparent that Spurs were keen on the Denmark centre-back.
The Lilywhites are said to have already tabled a bid of around £21m for the 24-year-old.
However, he has yet to commit to a move and so there is no certainty he will be at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in 2023-2024.
And a report from Fanatik claims Arsenal are now ‘insistently’ pursuing a deal for the former FC Copenhagen man.
Galatasaray have apparently branded Nelsson their ‘star player’ and Wolves are thought to have made an offer.
Manager Okan Buruk is a huge admirer of the stopper and sees him as a key member of the side.
However, the lure of the Premier League will be tough to resist for an up-and-coming star.
Nelsson a quality addition to Arsenal defence
There is no question that Arsenal are a club trending in the right direction.
They may have come up short in their pursuit of the Premier League title but gave Manchester City a run for their money.
Mikel Arteta’s side were the only ones to really challenge the Citizens and were bossing the title race until the last couple of months of the campaign.
The Spanish tactician knows he needs to strengthen to continue their progress.
And, with a return to the Champions League next term, he is doing just that.
The Rice deal, if it happens, will be the club’s major outlay but landing Nelsson could also be a shrewd piece of business.
Gabriel Magalhaes and William Saliba are likely to be Arteta’s preferred centre-back pairing. But the Dane would provide quality back-up to cover for injuries.
Saliba’s season ended in mid March due to injury and his absence coincided with Arsenal’s last-season stumble.
Nelsson is a reliable defender, who made 33 Super Lig starts for the Turkish giants last season as they won the title. And he was seen 36 times in 2021-22.
The Scandinavian also has experience of playing in Europe, with outings in both the Champions League and Europa League.
He is a versatile player who can also operate as defensive midfielder.
It remains to be seen if he does end up at the Emirates but the report adds that he is in behind-scenes transfer talks to leave Galatasaray.
And a fee of £21m would not be beyond Arsenal’s budget despite their heavy spending.
The spectre of rivals Spurs still looms large, however, with Ange Postecoglou said to be eager to sign the youngster.
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