Arsenal have been very busy in this transfer window, reducing the size of our bloated squad by clearing out many fringe players by either sending them out on loan or by buying out their contracts.
But one player that we did manage to clear out in the summer was Lucas Torreira, who was sent on loan to Atletico Madrid before Thomas Partey went the other way to join the Gunners. The Uruguay international has started just two games in La Liga this season and has scored one goal and provided one assist in 13 appearances across all competitions, but his last league start came in October.
As this was a loan deal to effectively put Torreira in the shop window, it is no surprise that Arsenal are not happy that he is getting more playing time in La Liga. So much so that Edu told AS.com: “The situation is very simple,” Edu told AS.
“Arsenal are concerned about Torreira, first and foremost, his happiness, that he plays and that he is happy.
“We want to know about him, how he feels and, after that, what Atletico thinks. For us, Lucas and his happiness is what’s most important.
“If everyone is happy, we will continue as we are now. If Lucas is not happy, we will look for a change because there are many teams that are calling me to ask about the player’s situation.”
Torreira has since been linked with many clubs including Valencia, Fiorentina, Lazio and Torino, and the most recent rumour was that he was in talks with Inter Milan, but now Torreira’s agent Pablo Bentancur has made it clear he will not be moving again before the summer. He told FcInter1908.it: “I’ve had no contact from Inter for Torreira,” he said.
“I haven’t received any phone call.
“Torreira is an Atletico player, he’s very happy there and he won’t leave Madrid in January.”
Well, you can’t get much clearer than that.
Arsenal can only hope that the little Uruguayan gets many more chances to show his quality in the second half of the season…
