Arsenal have always been one of two things in the transfer market. Firstly, they’ve been very lax in the past, half heartedly orchestrating deals, spending too much time negotiating and limiting their options.
Arsenal's incomings in the transfer window:
Dani Ceballos [loan] ✅
William Saliba [£27m] ✅
Gabriel Martinelli [£6m] ✅Nicolas Pépé [£72m] ⌛
Kieran Tierney [£25m] ⌛Not bad for a £45m budget. pic.twitter.com/oQQnCQlsmL
— Football Tweet ⚽ (@Football__Tweet) July 31, 2019
For an Arsenal fan, this has been incredibly frustrating and some of Wenger’s dealings were borderline farce. Last minute purchases and the odd panic buy were part and parcel of Wenger’s reign but that was after he’d lost his magic touch. Having said that he did manage to pull off Aubameyang and Lacazette, making Unai Emery’s life a little more pleasant.
Secondly, Arsenal have always been secretive to the point of being sneaky. Nipping in at the last minute, under the radar unexpectedly to pull off a surprise. Aubameyang and Lacazette weren’t exactly telegraphed deals, yet, Arsenal and Wenger, managed to seal those transfers in consecutive windows.
Nicolas Pepe is another such deal , no one expected that Arsenal will pull out such a transfer and if, like we assume, it goes ahead this week, within days, it is certainly a feather in the cap of Arsenal’s management team and the hierarchy. I hate admitting that, it almost hurt.
Interesting to note from the meeting with Arsenal fans last night what Vinai Venkatesham said about the transfer kitty: 'I don't recognise these figures [£40-£45m]. I've seen it everywhere but it doesn't come from us. We never ever talk about how much money we've got to spend.' pic.twitter.com/jCIPOkKzqk
— Layth (@laythy29) July 26, 2019
The word is that Arsenal are in the middle of another surprise deal and it’s not Rugani. Speculation was rife that Sami Khedira (Juventus) might be making his way to the Emirates but that’s been firmly rebuffed by Unai Emery when he said,
‘Khedira is a very good player but this is the first time I have heard his name mentioned.’
Logically, Khedira would be hard to turn down and would provide quality in Arsenal midfield along side Lucas Torreira as an upgrade to the haphazard Xhaka.
However, Emery is more likely to turn his attentions to defence once Pepe signs on the dotted line, which makes Pape Abou Cisse (Olympiacos) and Ruben Dias (Benfica) candidates for a last minute trolley dash, with both in demand and would cost £10/15m and £52m.
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Yet, it could easily be a South American candidate because since Edu returned to Brazil to try to fashion a deal for Everton Soares, little has been heard of him or his efforts. Walter Kannemann (Gremio) is still a name that is stuck in the pipe, with Arsenal said to ‘very interested’ and the price of the deal, which could be a snip at £10/12m.
Kannemann (28) who’s nickname is ‘The Filthy Pigeon’ is considered one of the best defenders in South America and the fact that Edu has solid contacts with Grêmio and was recently in negotiations for Everton Soares May add fuel to this rumour.
Pépé has signed and he’s new Arsenal player. ✍🏻⚪️🔴 #AFC #Arsenal
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) July 30, 2019
Granted, it may not be the big name deal some look for but if Pepe signs for Arsenal, only the arrival of Lionel Messi could eclipse that.
