Arsenal may have secured the signing of Rob Holding from Bolton already (and he has impressed massively in pre season if I may say so) but it hasn’t stopped Arsene Wenger from keeping his eye on the transfer market for other potential defensive targets.
With concerns still surrounding the team at the back, Arsenal are supposedly looking to add one more new face to the centre of defence and if the rumours are to be believed, then Valencia’s Mustafi is a top target for Arsene Wenger. As the rumours have increased, Arsene was obviously questioned about the links and once again he replied in typical Wenger fashion.
Le Prof remained rather coy on the matter, choosing to say: “We have not closed any deal with anybody at the moment. That’s the answer. You speak about Mustafi. Is it Mustafi or anybody else – we haven’t concluded anything at the moment.”
It’s a typical Arsene Wenger response to the media’s questions, I mean when will they learn that he doesn’t like to divulge on Arsenal transfer news! It leaves a lot up for debate about the German international’s future, as well as whether Arsenal will secure another defender this summer. The Gunners are supposedly on the lookout for an experienced top quality centre back because Per Mertesacker’s injury will rule him out for a large part of the season. Fellow German Mustafi is subsequently the bookies favourite to be the centre back replacement at Arsenal.
In rather related news it is anticipated that Mustafi will not feature for Valencia against Premier Leaue side Bournemouth, after the German picked up a ‘foot injury’ on the day the team arrived in the country. If Mustafi has recovered and does feature, then I suppose we can assume that perhaps any potential deal hasn’t progressed quite as far as some media outlets may be reporting. However if he isn’t anywhere to be seen, then perhaps it could suggest that Arsenal are edging closer towards a deal to bring the experienced centre back to the club. Arsenal reportedly had their initial €18 million bid rejected, with Valencia reportedly suggesting only the €50 million release clause in his contract would be enough. But with Valencia also reportedly needing to balance their financial books, perhaps a cheaper deal for Mustafi could certainly be agreed between parties.
By AH