Arsenal tipped to miss out on 15-goal playmaker after he makes dramatic U-turn

Arsenal’s pursuit of Jamal Musiala is likely to end up in disappointment, with a report claiming the playmaker’s stance on his future at Bayern Munich as Alexander Isak shows the Gunners’ fans what he is capable of with a brilliant performance for Newcastle United.

Musiala is one of the best young players in the world and is a key figure at Bayern. The 21-year-old attacking midfielder has been on the books of the German giants since 2019 and has won the Bundesliga four times with the Bavarian club.

A former Chelsea academy prospect, Musiala has been a star for Bayern this season. The Germany international playmaker has scored 15 goals and given seven assists in 28 matches in all competitions.

In the 2023-24 campaign, the youngster scored 12 goals and provided seven assists in 38 appearances for Bayern, who remain among the Bundesliga title favourites on Oddspedia.

According to TBR, Musiala’s performances for Bayern have attracted the attention of Arsenal, who have been showing interest in him since the end of last summer.

The playmaker had been stalling on a new contract, and that had alerted Arsenal, who felt that they could convince him to make the move to the Emirates Stadium.

However, it has now been reported that talks between Bayern and Musiala are progressing, with the Bundesliga leaders believing that Alphonso Davies’s decision to extend his stay at the Allianz Arena will convince the youngster to put pen to paper on a new deal.

“Musiala put talks over a new deal on hold before December, but recent weeks have seen Bayern step up their efforts to tie down the midfielder to fresh terms,” states the report.

TBR has noted that Chelsea, Manchester City, Liverpool and Real Madrid are also keen on Musiala, but the attacker is now likely to sign a new deal with Bayern and turn down potential transfers away from the German club.

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Alexander Isak stars for Newcastle against Arsenal

While Arsenal fans will be disappointed to hear that Musiala is unlikely to join them, they can be excited at the prospect of seeing Isak play for them next season even though the striker helped Newcastle United beat the Gunners on Wednesday evening,

TEAMtalk’s transfer correspondent Ben Jacobs has reported that Isak is Arsenal’s dream target with the north London club keen on a deal in the summer, and based on his performance on Wednesday, it is hard not to see why Gunners manager Mikel Arteta likes him so much.

Newcastle beat Arsenal 2-0 at St. James’ Park in the second leg of the Carabao Cup semi-finals to win the tie 4-0 on aggregate.

Isak did not score for the Magpies, but he was a constant problem for Arsenal centre-backs William Saliba and Gabriel, who looked uncomfortable and clueless on how to deal with him.

After the match, Newcastle midfielder Bruno Guimaraes told Sky Sports: “Isak is the best striker these days for me.”

Former Tottenham midfielder Jamie Redknapp noted: “I have never seen Gabriel and Saliba so uncomfortable and that is because of the quality of Alexander Isak. They normally bully teams but they couldn’t handle Newcastle’s front three.”

Latest Arsenal news: Guehi plan, Martinez bid

While Saliba and Gabriel are two of the best defenders in the Premier League, it seems that Arsenal are keen on signing another centre-back.

A report has claimed that Arsenal are planning to make a bid for Crystal Palace centre-back Marc Guehi.

Manchester United, Liverpool and Chelsea are also looking to make moves for the England international in the summer of 2025, while Tottenham had a bid for the Palace star turned down in the January transfer window.

Arsenal wanted to sign a striker in the winter transfer window and failed in their attempt to secure the services of Aston Villa star Ollie Watkins.

There is now speculation that the Gunners are planning to make a £100m bid for Inter Milan striker Lautaro Martinez.

Martinez himself is reported to be open to leaving Inter for an adventure in the Premier League in the summer.

Meanwhile, TEAMtalk’s transfer correspondent Fraser Fletcher has reported that the north London club are keen on signing Benjamin Sesko in the summer of 2025.

The striker has a release clause of £65m in his contract at German club RB Leipzig and is ready to switch to the Premier League, LaLiga or another club in the Bundesliga.

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