Arsenal could be priced out of Wilfried Zaha transfer
The latest development in the transfer saga, per The Daily Mail, is that Crystal Palace will demand a massive £100 million from Arsenal for the Ivorian winger.
The Gunners have only £45 million to spend this summer, which has severely restricted the kind of players they can target.
Saint-Etienne defender William Saliba and Lorient forward Alexis Claude Maurice are two cut-price options Unai Emery has targeted. Wilfried Zaha has recently been linked, but will likely cost much more than Arsenal can afford.
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Initial reports stated that a fee of £80 million could persuade Palace to let go of their star man. But it now seems like the sale of Aaron Wan-Bissaka to Manchester United has led Roy Hogdson to further hike the asking fee by £20 million.
Unai Emery had earlier requested the Arsenal board for more funds to bid for Zaha, but it’s highly unlikely that Stan Kroenke will set aside such a huge amount for a single player.
Although Arsenal’s chances have now diminished to almost non-existent, that might yet change. Mesut Ozil might be offloaded after a severely underwhelming campaign, while Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is being linked with a shock move to United.
United’s Romelu Lukaku is being pursued by Inter Milan, whose manager Antonio Conte is a huge admirer of the Belgian forward. Reports suggest that Aubameyang and Sevilla’s Wissan Ben Yedder are the primary contenders to replace Lukaku at Old Trafford.
While Ben Yedder will be a significantly cheaper option (his release clause is just £35 million), Aubameyang is a much more attractive, albeit short-term, option.
The 30-year-old has proven himself in the Premier League, winning the Golden Boot last season. The player himself is also open to a move, and will command a fee in excess of £70 million.
If that move goes through, Arsenal will almost certainly have sufficient funds to move for Zaha, but it remains to be seen if the board would sanction a British record transfer. Zaha could even be a more attractive option than the Gabon international, being 4 years younger, and willing to play both out wide or up front.
Next. Man United sign defender Aaron Wan-Bissaka. dark
The 26-year-old also wants a move away from Selhurst Park, and could force Palace’s hand.