Arsenal are a club which is notorious for being linked with player after player every time the transfer window opens up and for many of our targets, the media rumours often make their stories into a long running transfer saga. Arsenal are no strangers to dragging their transfer talks out and if true, then I don’t think there was a bigger Arsenal saga last summer than Álvaro Morata.
Álvaro Morata, has apparently openly discussed with his agent about leaving Juventus last summer, with a number of European clubs keeping their eyes peeled on any developments. The Spaniard was being tracked by his former side Real Madrid, as well as Premier League clubs Arsenal and Chelsea. The Gunners were reportedly firm favourites for the striker at one point in the summer and although he is not the most prolific goalscorer based upon his career record, there are many fans alike who would’ve considered him to be a decent target for Arsenal.
The price tag placed on the player was most likely a bit off putting for the Gunners, with a rumoured fee of around £50 million and such was the case that he ended up returning to Madrid in a cut-price deal. There were then rumours that he may be sold by Madrid for profit and thus Arsenal’s interest hotted up again. The Gunners failed in their attempts however, with Morata saying he intended on giving Madrid another chance in his career.
Now however, after a less than satisfying number of appearances this season in Spain, Morata may consider that exit door after all and apparently the Champions League finalists would consider allowing a move. The Spaniard has made 13 LaLiga starts, but has a rather impressive 15 goals to his name. With doubts about playing time, with Zidane still preferring Benzema over Morata, the striker may be considering moving elsewhere. As a result, as you can imagine, the media has thus again linked the Gunners with Morata, stating that they are keeping tabs on the situation.
15 goals in 13 appearances is very impressive, although of course if he is going to cost around the £50 million mark and be the club’s main striker, than he’s going to have to hit at least 25-30 goals in all competitions. Arsenal will surely never go for a £50 million deal, especially under Wenger, but the Gunners may test the waters with a fee of £40 million, after surprisingly high fees for both Xhaka and Mustafi.
Could this deal be back on the cards, or is it going to be another long summer of media speculation?
By AH