Welcome to the heights (or depths) of the summer silly season, as the major international tournaments are now over. It’s all preseason friendlies and transfer window talk for the next month, until the season begins. Let’s take a look at the latest narratives churning in the Arsenal transfer rumor mill.
For the most part, it’s been a dreadully boring this transfer window, but Arsenal have reached an agreement with Brighton on Ben White.
Maybe that deal will prelude some big names to move, and perhaps (hopefully) that will start a chain reaction of transfer activity.
Italy were the ultimate Kings of the Euro 2020, and Manuel Locatelli was one of the tournament’s biggest heroes. The 23-year-old Sassulo midfielder is wanted by several clubs, with Juventus said to be leading the way.
However, Arsenal are still in the mix, and they’re prepared to pay a €40 million transfer fee in order to sign the midfield maestro, according to journalist and transfer guru Fabrizio Romano in The Guardian.
Speaking of Romano, he just broke some more transfer news on his Twitter account:
Official and confirmed. Albert Sambi Lokonga joins Arsenal on a permanent deal for €17.5m + €4.5m add ons. Contract until June 2026. Number 23. ??? #AFC
Next one: Ben White, done deal to be announced in the next days after medicals. £50m to Brighton, personal terms agreed.
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) July 19, 2021
The Anderlecht midfielder has been linked with a move to the club for several weeks. For more on Albert Sambi Lokonga and what his arrival means, go here and here.
And finally, Arsenal have identified Norwich City right-back Max Aarons as the go to target if and when Hector Bellerin leaves the club this summer. That’s according to the Daily Mirror, who report that Bellerin, 26, is a target of both Atletico Madrid and Inter Milan.
We’ve previously profiled while Hector Bellerin is the ideal player for the Nerazzurri in an earlier post. Bellerin has been with the club for a very long time, as he came up in the north Londoners youth system.
The Emirates are hoping to strike a deal that would include a fee of about £17 million.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank, partnered with News Now. Banks, the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry,” has regularly appeared in WGN, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune.
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