Real Madrid ‘offer’ £79m plus two players for Arsenal jewel as Fabrizio Romano drops update

Fabrizio Romano has dropped a “hopefully soon” update on William Saliba’s contract extension at Arsenal, amid speculation in Spain that Real Madrid were planning to offer the Gunners a package worth €90m plus the offer of two Los Blancos stars in part exchange.

Saliba is now established as one of the most coveted central defenders in world football, having a major influence on Arsenal‘s growth into serious Premier League title contenders under Mikel Arteta in recent seasons. Now about to embark as his fourth season as a Gunners regular, the 24-year-old has racked up 134 appearances, chipping in with seven goals along the way.

However, with his current two expiring in summer 2027, interest in acquiring Saliba‘s services has never been far from the news. To that end, Real Madrid are confirmed admirers of the 28-times capped France international, having been persistently linked with his signing over the last two seasons.

Now, with Xabi Alonso desperate to strengthen his defence and having drawn a blank in his quest to convince Liverpool to sell Ibrahima Konate, fresh speculation claims Real Madrid are readying a dizzying offer for the Gunners jewel that even Arteta might find difficult to refuse.

According to Fichajes, they claim the Spanish giants have ‘submitted a bombshell offer’ for Saliba, comprising of €90m (£79m, $106m) cash,  ‘plus two key players who could be key to closing the deal’.

Per the report, Arsenal have been offered both playmaker Arda Guler on a season’s loan and highly-rated defender Raul Asensio on a permanent deal, with the latter offered up as a potential replacement for the Frenchman in the Gunners’ rearguard.

Despite that, Romano insists Arsenal’s first priority remains on tying Saliba down to a new deal.

“William Saliba confirms, ‘Hopefully soon’ when asked about a new contract at Arsenal,” Romano began on his YouTube channel. “Well, I can confirm that Arsenal’s sporting director is working hard on this deal.

“Arsenal are prepared to accelerate talks with William Saliba; they’ve already started negotiations with his agents. Since Berta arrived, he has been working on extending Ethan Nwaneri, which will be official soon. Myles Lewis-Skelly is already official.

“For Saliba, contacts had already started before the summer transfer window, but now they continue. Arsenal are offering a new deal and have made an important proposal to Saliba.”

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Real Madrid interest in William Saliba confirmed as star makes statement

Confirming Saliba is a player of genuine interest to Real Madrid, Romano continued: “They [Arsenal] hope to reach an agreement as soon as possible because they know of interest from Real Madrid, Madrid loves Saliba

“Madrid would love to attack for Saliba, he is a player they have on top of their list, but Arsenal are showing their ambition.”

However, it seems Arsenal have absolutely no reason to fear the potential departure of their star defender.

He appears extremely settled at Emirates Stadium and in no position to seek an exit ahead of a World Cup year. To that end, his focus is firmly set on both a strong season with Arsenal and on securing his place in Didier Deschamps’ squad that will head to the USA, Canada and Mexico next summer.

Asked again over the weekend if he would be extending his stay in north London, Saliba dropped a simple five-word update to reporters, stating: “Hopefully soon. God is great.”

With Saliba set to stay, Arsenal expert Charles Watts feels Arteta’s squad is “suddenly looking very bloated” and named four players who could move on.

Watts wrote in his Caught Offside column recently: “With all the new arrivals, the squad is suddenly looking very bloated and Andrea Berta will be looking to find takers for players like Reiss Nelson, Sambi Lokonga, Fabio Vieira and maybe Oleksandr Zinchenko.”

Arsenal transfer latest: Clubs gather for Gabriel Jesus; Gyokeres criticised

Meanwhile, there is increasing speculation surrounding Gabriel Jesus after Arsenal signed Viktor Gyokeres to replace the Brazilian, with a report claiming Barcelona and Newcastle United are both in the frame – and a contentious move has also been mentioned as a possibility.

It emerged on Saturday that Flamengo have opened talks with Jesus’ camp, with reports in the Brazilian press claiming the star is open to such a move. That came after claims Arsenal had put their second top earner up for sale in a brutal move by Berta.

On the subject of Gyokeres, the new Gunners’ No.14 has been blasted for showing a ‘lack of professionalism’ when forcing through his transfer to Arsenal.

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