Arsenal and Man City have built a fierce field rivalry for many years, but now they can be involved in the “surprise” transfer saga from the pitch.
Priorities after Andrea Berta’s busy Arsenal relocation window
Sports Director Andrea Berta made a genuine splash as sports director in the summer window of his debut, overseeing more than £250 million in spending on eight major signatures to bolster Mikel Arteta’s title challenge.
This spending has made Arsenal one of the most luxurious spenders in the Premier League, recording the highest net net spending when considering the lack of key player sales.
Premier League Club Summer Expenses | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Rank | club | Total expenditure | sale | Net expenditure |
5. | Sunderland | £183.4m | £42 million | – £141.4m |
4. | Tottenham | £171.2m | £17 million | -154.2M |
3. | Manchester United | £232.4m | £617m | – £170.7m |
2. | Liverpool | £446.5m | £228.1m | – £218.4m |
1. | Arsenal | £267 million | £10 million | -257M |
The arrival of Kepa Arrizabalaga, Piero Hincapie, Cristhian Mosquera, Martin Zubimendi, Christian Norgaard, Noni Maduke, Eberechi Eze and Viktor Gyoker was worthy of the Gunners’ massive restraint.
Arsenal was given an all-powerful boost by William Saliba’s agreed contract extension.
According to the football relocation, Saka is expected to put his pen on paper before Christmas, and his fresh future conditions could be in line with Arsenal’s best earners.
The 24-year-old is poised to earn around £250,000 a week when he signs, but that number is even higher and allows negotiations to be smoother.
With both Saliba and Saka tied up in the near future, Berta could turn his attention to the transfer market, with journalist Pete O’Rourke sharing that Arsenal’s recruiting team will look to one of Germany’s rising stars.
Arsenal and Man City Eye “Surprise” Nathaniel Brown’s move
That told Football Insider that both Arsenal and Mann City are targeting Eintracht Frankfurt star Nathaniel Brown, according to journalist Pete O’Rourke.
The German under 21 international left-back wrote a new contract earlier this year and kept him in Anthracht until 2030, so the Bundesliga side is in a very solid position to demand good money.
Additionally, Arsenal already has Miles Lewis Skelly and Riccardo Carafioli on left back, but not lost in O’Rourke, he claims that Berta is watching Brown’s “surprise” move at some point in the coming forward window.
“This is a bit surprising that the two clubs have connections to Arsenal and Manchester City. ” O’Rourke said of his interest in Brown.
“Arsenal is well packed with Riccardo Carafioli and Miles Lewis Skelly on the left back, so I don’t think there’s really an urgent need for them to bring other people into Brown.
“Cities likewise signed Rayan Ait-Nouri as the left back of their new first choice in the summer, and they have Gvardiol and Nico O’Reilly who can slot there.
“Frankfurt is not under pressure to sell. As we’ve seen in the last few transfer windows, they’re tough negotiators, as they’ve got a lot of money for Mahmarsh and a lot of fees for Ekitike.
The 22-year-old has three goals and seven assists from 26 Bundesliga appearances last season, featuring both left-back and left midfielder, making Brown more use than simply filling the left side of the defense.
He has also fallen out of Entracht’s mark this season, and Arteta may be wary of his offensive abilities in the uncertain future surrounding Super Sable Andro Torosad and Gabriel Martinelli.
According to Whoscored, only Omar Marmoush averaged per 90 in the final third than Eintracht’s Brown last season, finishing 24/25 as the third-best performer behind Egyptian and Liverpool star Hugo Ekitiké.
In the face of that, Brown is not a major requirement for now, but it is clear why Arsenal is wary of his exploitation in Europe.