Arsenal has suffered another summer transfer blow as they miss out on the signature of Ryan Bertrand to Leicester City.
The 31-year-old formerly of Chelsea is leaving Southampton as a free agent after failing to reach a new agreement with them.
He was targeted by the Gunners to provide cover for Kieran Tierney after they allowed Sead Kolasinac to leave them.
However, the transfer couldn’t happen in the January transfer window and they hoped to convince him to join them as a free agent this summer.
They always faced competition from Leicester City, who have also been looking for a new left-back.
The Foxes are managed by Brendan Rodgers who coached Bertrand during his time in the Chelsea youth team.
Football Insider is reporting that Leicester City has won the race for his signature.
The report says he has agreed on a two-year deal and would be reunited with Rodgers once again.
Arsenal and the Foxes were also interested in signing Zambian striker, Patson Daka and they have beaten Mikel Arteta’s club to his signature.
Arsenal fans are still waiting to see who becomes their club’s first summer signing.
They have been linked with a host of players and it seems Ben White might join them soon.
I don’t understand how losing out to the Foxes on Bertrand is a transfer blow. If anything, it’s a transfer boost. We just dodged the signing of another over-aged player. That’s a good thing. Plus, I don’t see how Ryan is of the ilk of players Arsenal should be “gunning” for.
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God but you bloggers are so full of it. Missed out? They have signed a younger fullback. Try to keep up
This article has nothing in it. We all know that Arsenal was never interested in signing the players aged 30+ and never considered Bertrand as a target. How come it becomes a blow to arsenal when we are waiting to see the official unveiling of our new left back, younger and skillful in Nuno Tavares????? If you were the one to make a decision, would you chose Bertrand over Tavares?????
Clement, spot on analysis. Once again 1 plus 1 equals 11; Arsenal needed a back up LB, Bertrand was available on a free, therefore QED Arsenal was going to buy Bertrand. Instead the Club is correctly in line to sign Nuno Tavares, a player with potential for the reasons you set out, rather than a player potentially looking for his last big pay day.
Spot on.
Not a blow but, a boldness
Too late to care. Bertrand would have been a stop gap. A one season wonder at best. Then what? Back to the drawing board.
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We are alredy signing a younger, faster and more attacking full back in Nuno Tavares, in all likelihood our first signing of the season.
Excellent comments. The writer seems to be intent on making Arsenal look bad. I know Bertrand is decent, but I’d rather have an younger hungrier player willing to prove himself in the Premier League. Please keep up.
Next story: Arsenal lose out to totts for Neves.
You heard it here first…….
Not a loss in my opinion.
Didn’t bother reading the article as soon as i saw the headline…
Oh woe is me ! So we have missed out on yet another of the fake 1001 rumoured new signings How ever will we now fill the required quota that certain JA writers demand of 1000 new players. Lets all weep together, so here goes: one, two, three, now all weep!
Obviously all the personal fault of that “arch villain MA”!
Who blamed MA?