Romano drops truth on Arsenal approach for 20-goal Prem star, with ‘crazy money’ claim

Fabrizio Romano has denied that Arsenal have been in the mix for Anthony Gordon, who were not looking at the signing of a high-quality winger in the summer.

Gordon had a true breakout season last term. The Englishman netted 11 Premier League goals, along with 10 assists, for the seventh-placed Magpies.

He had of course already shown his quality with Everton – where he had seven goals and eight assists in 78 games – before a £40million move to St James’ Park.

And reports of late suggested that another bigger Premier League move could have been on the cards, to Arsenal, something that transfer insider Romano has denied.

“I’m aware there have been some claims made about Arsenal enquiring about Anthony Gordon, but I wanted to clarify my understanding around the Newcastle winger here,” he told his Daily Briefing column.

“As I reported previously, Liverpool were the club in talks to sign Gordon in June. I don’t have any concrete info on Arsenal also because they never really planned to spend crazy money on a winger this summer.

“Liverpool wanted him in June but then he was too expensive. That’s all we can say for now.”

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Two big sides linked with Gordon

Reports suggest that the Gunners are planning to sign the Newcastle man in 2025.

While Romano suggested that Arsenal did not plan to spend much on a winger in the summer, that does not mean an enquiry regarding next summer could not come at some point.

Liverpool, meanwhile, are still said to be interested in a move for the thriving winger.

And recent report suggest that while a new contract is in the works for Gordon, no release clause will be inserted.

That could make it harder for the Reds to secure the transfer, as they would have to listen to Newcastle’s demands rather than knowing exactly what price they’d need to pay.

Arsenal want to improve attack

And while Romano suggests no big money was to be spent on a winger at Arsenal in the summer, they seem to be eager to expand upon their attacking options.

Both they and Liverpool have been linked with Brentford forward Bryan Mbeumo, who has three goals in as many games this season. It’s believed he could cost £40million by the summer.

Arsenal have also been linked with attacking-midfield star Jaman Musiala, who can also play as a winger.

But they have competition from Manchester City – who have pipped them to the Premier League title two seasons in a row – and they could get another one over on the Gunners, with the suggestion that the Citizens are currently leading the race.

Where does Gordon rank in January 2023 transfers

Gordon was one of the biggest signings made in the Premier League in January 2023. Since that move, he has 13 Premier League goals and 10 assists.

Cody Gakpo, Matheus Cunha and Leandro Trossard were among the other highly-anticipated signings in that window.

Gakpo has 15 Premier League goals and eight assists in that time, Cunha has 15 goals and seven assists, and Trossard has 14 goals and 11 assists.

Each man has fairly similar stats for their respective sides, yet Gordon is the only one who is being consistently linked with big sides – two of which other members of the aforementioned group play for.

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