Spanish giants interested in a surprise Arsenal man
According to the DailyMail, La Liga side Atletico Madrid are interested in a loan move for Cedric Soares.
The report further suggested that they would then like to make the deal permanent in the summer.
After the departure of England international Kieran Trippier, the current La Liga champions are looking in the market for a replacement.
Cedric is a player that Diego Simeone is interested in bringing to the Spanish capital.
The Portuguese has made 36 appearances for the Gunners, scoring once and assisting four times, since making a switch in January 2020.
Arsenal are considering a loan proposal from Atletico Madrid for Cedric Soares, as first reported by @SamiMokbel81_DM.
Unclear whether #AFC will accept at this stage.
The right back has been training as normal this week and expected to play against Nottingham Forest on Sunday. pic.twitter.com/GLr7iKR0ZD
— Chris Wheatley (@ChrisWheatley_) January 7, 2022
This season, however, the 30-year-old has only featured in seven games. Thus, a departure in the winter transfer window is very much on the cards.
But things have got a wee bit complicated for the London side. After allowing Ainsley Maitland-Niles to join Italian outfit Roma, Arsenal are short on numbers at the right back slot.
Calum Chambers and Cedric are currently the backups to summer signing Takehiro Tomiyasu. But both have been linked to a move away.
Chambers has just six months left on his current deal. And even though the club has an option to extend it to a further year, he does not look to be part of the club’s long-term plans.
If Mikel Arteta sanctions the sale of Cedric, they have to keep Calum Chambers as a backup.
This also makes the case of adding another right back more important come the summer. Especially an attack minded one.
Mikel Arteta’s men have to be unpredictable going forward. If they have a different option in their ranks, they will have better chances of doing just that.
Norwich City’s Max Aarons and Brighton’s Tariq Lamptey are the names which constantly cropped up last summer.
It won’t be surprising if they pursue a deal for either one of them this summer.
Finding a hidden gem, just like they did with Nuno Tavares, is also something which will excite the fanbase and be more economical for the Gunners.
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£1 million loan deal, option to buy. Cover 100% of wages. Done!
He’s completely replaceable.
By who and at how much?
Well, White seems to be ahead of Cedric. Then there’s still Chambers. And of course Tomiyasu.
We missed out on Nathan Patterson who moved from Rangers to Everton this week for 12m.Their need for a RB is greater than ours, but imo, Patterson is superior to Aarons and Lamptey neither of whom are good defensively.He would also have been an upgrade on Cedric and Chambers who is basically a centre back.
It is long overdue to move on the fringe players at the club. And so,any opportunity that presents itself in doing that, Arsenal should embrace it. As, rather than losing them for free, some cash will come in to help fund new signings,but, also lower the wage bill and open space for better quality players joining the club. Arsenal must not be stingy about the fees for these fringe players, as it is far more important to get rid of them, so as to strengthen the team with better quality players in every position on the team.