Arsenal are in talks with the agent of Marquinhos Cipriano, who is impressing for Sao Paolo in Brazil at present.
The 17 year-old is yet to make his senior debut for his club, but is touted as one of the hottest prospects in Brazil, and is viewed as a future star of his club’s first-team.
Cipriano scored 14 goals in 12 matches for his club’s under-17 side, and his club are believed to be keen to keep a hold of the wonderkid,
Juventus are also believed to have made contact with his representatives, and despte Sao Paolo’s unwillingness to negotiate his sale, could be forced to lose him, due to a clause in his contract.
The attacking midfielder is available for £23 Million (or €30 Million) , and could become the latest South-American to make the bold move to Europe from his home country.
Gabriel Paulista is the only current player in the Gunners side who is also from Brazil, and could help the youngster to settle in London should he agree to switch.
A work permit could well prove a problem, although it could be approved on appeal, due to the fee his signature would require.
Arsenal have already agreed to sign Nigerian 18 year-old Kelechi Nwakali this summer, who is set to sign a contract with the club once he is finished on international duty for his country’s Under-20 side, who face Sudan twice in July.
Team-mate Alexandre Pato made the move from Sao Paolo to London in January on a temporary basis, but looks unlikely to make that move permanent having failed to hold down a regular starting role for Chelsea, but I doubt that would put Marquinhos off making the plunge.
Is £23 Million too much to spend on an unproven youngster? Or does Man United’s Martial deal prove that some risks are worth taking?
I know allot of fans will be thinking – wouldn’t ya know it, we need a proven goal machine as of yesterday and here’s Arsene trying to get another bloody teenager signed. The thing is though, and I believe allot might feel the same – The most likely shot of us getting a truly world class striker of the likes of our legends will be if we groom one. Brazil or Argentina are in my opinion exactly where we need to be looking for this future star. I was a little bit excited when I came across this article earlier with him being from Sao Paulo and all, and the fact that it’s a release clause which is handy. If he is a bit special well then we’d need a clause, Sao Paulo would doubtfully consider selling him in my opinion, before they knew exactly what they had on their hands. It’s not pennies we’re talking about here, it’s quite a number for a 17 year old. That’s how Neymar was spotted, young, and pricey, or he could be the next Brazilian Ronaldo. I think he’s already gotten his first cap, and he’s nearing one goal in one at 17, not sure of the level however (still?). Wenger has a habit of being interested by a player, but for whatever reason, that same player either stays where he is or else moves to another club before boom! he has a breakout season. If Wenger believes this kid is a lock to go on and do great things well then he should go after this player like he would go after a free meal.
These are a few stuffs that don’t go down well with me
* £23mil? What a Life!….okay we got the cash, but does that mean we should throw it all around like that?….
* He’s 17….so we’d have to play the waiting game for maturity to set in…
* From Sao paolo… Never played in Europe….no eligibility until work permit is granted…..another 2-3 seasons of playing the waiting game again
* Attacking midfielder…..seriously aren’t we done with that area of the pitch?…
* One for the future prospect…..as good as this sounds or looks…. It’s no solution to our present predicaments
[On that note, this will not be the signing of the summer we desperately need….I’d say tie up the deal for these kids behind the scenes and move on to what we really need…. Quit jittering!……Transfer window waits for no one….Sign an effing striker]
Know of Neymar, Messi and Ronaldo? Hmmm. In this business, sometimes you gamble. It can pay off. I still believe some good forwards sometimes come from South America.
@Godswill…….. I understand completely……. It’s why i say these wonderkid signings must not be prioritized over what we desperately need at the moment…… It’s pointless dragging on the signing of kids for eternity…. (Note how long it takes to complete Nwakali’s transfer which doesn’t even look like being complete)
The whole world knows this, why can’t Arsene?
Firstly.. What are you talking about!? Nwakali’s transfer was delayed until he turned 18…
The way some fans just come up with the obscene interpretations of what the club must be doing with transfers and create their own realities from it is simply ridiculous.
‘dragging on’ a signing (especially one for what? 3-4mil) is in no way preventative of pursuing other targets..
Do you honestly believe Wenger is sitting there going. ‘hmm… gotta wait until this Nwakali deal is wrapped up before I pursue a striker!! Hope he signs soon!!’?
Secondly.. Two of the biggest continents for football currently have major tournaments involved with a massive amount of international quality players concentrating on that. Agents and clubs (including.. believe it or not.. Arsenal!) will be doing a massive amount behind the scenes. Why would the agent/club/player want to leak anything to the press that could be a possible distraction?? Ibra, Lewi, Milik, Janssen, Morata, Vardy, Higuain, Embolo pick your poison? 90% of the likely targets who are seemingly wanted by the majority of fans are currently playing… ‘The transfer window waits for no-one’ – trash!! Pre-season is still a way away, not to mention the names will still need a rest after a very, very long season.
Thirdly – In reference to Marquinhos Cipriano. I’d bet my bottom dollar you’d be joining in with the chorus about Wenger not signing ‘insert name’ when they were younger if it was singing at the moment as it’s an excuse to whinge which you seem fond of. If this kid truly is going to be world-class 20mil (and if Wenger truly is considering that sort of investment he has to be something special) is a snippet in the current market. With Maxi Romero supposedly being pursued by us for multiple seasons Wenger and Arsenal seems active in South America. There is absolutely nothing wrong with investing heavily in the future.. Look what happened with Neymar’s value and transfer once he started killing it internationally? Barca had to pull off one of the most dodgy transfers the world has ever seen to get it over the line!
“* £23mil? What a Life!….okay we got the cash, but does that mean we should throw it all around like that?….”
Neymar cost £75mil as a court case proved, okay there was dodgy tax stuff…
“He’s 17….so we’d have to play the waiting game for maturity to set in…”
Maybe, maybe not.
Wasn’t Henry 17 when Wenger played him on the wing for Monaco?
I think Cesc was 17 when he played over 30 games in a season for us.
“* Attacking midfielder…..seriously aren’t we done with that area of the pitch?…”
Could he be used on the right?
“* One for the future prospect…..as good as this sounds or looks…. It’s no solution to our present predicaments”
Some players are good enough despite being young, I do not know this player so I can not say, how-ever to dismiss him due to assumptions could be foolish.
Why not!? Wenger has said it himself, the best strikers/wingers come from South America. If Sao Paolo put a 23 mill buy out clause on a 17 year old it’s cause they rate him highly. We’ve got more cash then Wenger knows what to do with. I’d say it’s worth the gamble.