Why Do Arsenal Take So Long Doing Transfers? by Dan Smith
I probably ask this every year in the transfer window, but why do Arsenal seem to find negotiating so hard compared to other clubs?
We seem to want to haggle over every last penny and detail. Yet for a side who are so cautious in spending, we seem to constantly leak out our business to the point that every window there is some sort of saga.
Think of Chelsea. One day I was reading they were interested in Chilwell and Ziyech, then a couple of days later their signings are confirmed.
I only heard about Werner’s buyout clause after it had been inserted.
Be honest, had you heard of Ruben Dias till a Sky Sport’s yellow ticker was stating Man City had purchased them?
It’s not just those with unlimited resources. Spurs, Man United, Villa, Wolves, Everton, Leeds, etc, have all brought talent this summer without dragging talks out for weeks. They identify targets, ask the seller the asset’s value and then decide if they agree with that figure or not.
If they don’t agree, they go to the next name on their shortlist.
We have been linked with Partey and Aouar for months now. The Gunners had every opportunity to deny interest as simply gossip but as I write this journalists with contacts at the Emirates, maintain our interest is genuine. Yet we seem to be one of the few clubs who get quoted a price and start bidding off at half the amount.
I understand part of waiting till the last minute on Monday to clinch a deal is poker from all parties. The closer to the deadline, the less power Lyon have if they want to make some money. Yet it’s a gamble. It allows other bids to materialise and leaves you with limited time to find a plan B.
For the sake of saving a few million, surely it’s worth having a settled team ready to start the new season?
Some gooners used to think our approach was simply down to Arsene Wenger’s indecisiveness. Well you can’t blame the Frenchman this time.
For example, it’s common knowledge 45 million triggers a release in Partey’s contract. Atletico Madrid have made it clear that’s the only way they will lose their midfielder. The Gunners have had months to decide if they rate the player enough to pay that or to look elsewhere.
Let me ask, how many other clubs would have found 45 million if that was your managers first choice? How many have?
Yes, we have lost match day revenue by we are not the only one, yet seem unique in how we do business. Some agents have said we are a laughing stock in the sport for how we negotiate.
At a time when many of our fans want to talk about how many players are being over paid, please remember equally others get a decent wage for recruiting players. That’s literally their jobs, to identify players and get them through the door.
They don’t just have two transfer Windows to do that, they should be doing that all year long. We just had an unexpected 3 months off where they should have been discussing all their ideas.
No one in football will admit this, but we know everyone talks behind the scenes. In other words there’s zero reason to be leaving your shopping ’til the last moment.
Certainly, no excuse if we end up not improving the team at all.
As things stand our net spend is 8 million.
That’s not including the 2 million saved by 55 redundancies.
We were the only team In Prem remember who asked players to take a wage cut. We were told this was so we could strengthen the squad.
We have two days for Stan Kroenke to show he has any kind of ambition….
Dan Smith