Arsenal have been linked with a move for Manu Kone this summer, and the midfielder’s impressive performances for France at the World Cup have continued to strengthen his reputation ahead of a possible transfer.
The AS Roma midfielder has caught the eye with a series of accomplished displays for Les Bleus, increasing speculation that he could change clubs before the current transfer window closes.
Arsenal are among the clubs interested in signing Kone, but they are no longer alone in the race for his signature as competition for the midfielder continues to grow.
Manchester United Join the Race
According to Football365, Manchester United have joined Arsenal in pursuing Kone. The report states that the Red Devils are eager to strengthen their midfield after seeing several of their preferred transfer targets join other clubs.
As a result, Kone has emerged as one of United’s leading options, setting up the possibility of a transfer battle with Arsenal for the France international.
The report also claims that United are now prioritising a move for the midfielder after missing out on other targets during the summer transfer window.
Arsenal Assess Their Options
Kone is reportedly pleased by the interest being shown in him and could complete a move to the Premier League before the transfer window comes to an end.
Arsenal will be keen to secure his signature if they decide to continue their pursuit, as the midfielder has demonstrated his quality for both club and country. His performances at the World Cup have only increased his appeal to clubs seeking reinforcements in the centre of the pitch.
However, Arsenal’s reported interest in Bruno Guimaraes could influence their transfer strategy. If the Gunners decide to focus their efforts on signing the Brazilian midfielder instead, they may choose to end their pursuit of Kone and allow Man Utd a clearer path to completing a deal.
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Kone is a terrific central midfielder who has been rightly acclaimed by the French media who are notoriously difficult to please.To me ,he would represent a far better buy than the older Guimaraes who is a fine player but does not have the pace and physical presence of Kone.Either player would substantially strengthen our central midfield options, but if I held the purse strings, i would opt for Kone.
Grandad, I’ve only seen him a limited number of times for Roma but I’ve been watching him closely with France and he is very impressive. Of course, you typically can’t learn a great deal about a player from his effectiveness in a handful of national side games but it does appear that he is the player we need if we can get him without paying too much over the odds.
I’ve not managed to watch many full matches at all, but my impression is that kone is a specialist destroyer who’s very good at tidying things up and getting the ball to the more creative players (very much like makelele) – which is fine when he has some of the best creative players in the world on his team. Guimares on the other hand is much more rounded, not a pure destroyer or pure creative player, but is quite effective in all areas. For me, guimares is more of what we need as kones strengths overlap too much with rice. Eg, could see a kone-rice midfield struggling more against low block teams, whereas a guimares-rice midfield might have a bit more to offer – just my impression, though.
Prior to the World Cup matches Davi, i too, was under the impression that Kone was first and foremost a dedicated DM.Having watched him for France however,he is more of a box to box operator , who powers forward with the ball and is not afraid to shoot when in range, which he has done on a number of occasions in the games I have watched.Guimaraes is undoubtedly a well rounded midfielder, but I would rather pay 50m for Kone ,than say £80m for the Newcastle man who is four years older.If we are successful in recruiting either, will Zubemendi be prepared to accept a lessor role in our powerful squad ?
We simply don’t have a sufficient backup for Rice in the defensive midfielder role imo. I believe this is our biggest need for our transfer window. We cannot depend on Rice continuing his energizer bunny imitation. Zubimendi’s ability to handle the physical requirements of the job in the PL I believe is very questionable and he is much more effective when going forward on a regular basis. If we acquired Kone, I believe it would still be MLS having to continue to show that maybe he shouldn’t be the odd man out much of the season.
Myles and Zubi, are capable of the DM role. Declan, Merino and the new recruit as CM/Box to box.
You make a good case – as mentioned, I haven’t really watched many full matches, so great to have your perspective. I don’t doubt you’re right about Kone – he clearly has the talent to make an impact on attack (as did makelele, shooting aside!).
Zubimendi will have to either be happy with a smaller role or raise his game, or he’ll push to leave at the end of next season. Frankly, I think the competition and rotation would do him good – I think he struggled with the number of games last season, which led to him losing a bit of kudos after a relatively strong start.
Same here.
Agree. Either would be excellent additions, but Koné is my preference. Not yet at his ceiling, cheaper, faster, more dynamic. Rice would presumably start most games anyway, but the ability to give him a rest and have a different profile to bring on is attractive.
Also, Bruno’s done enough over the last years against us to annoy me that it will take me a while to appreciate him 🙂
I hope the management turn their attention to this guy, should a move for Guimaraes not materialize. He looks the guy to play as CM, in absence of Rice. I do prefer him personally.