Tag: England

Liverpool complete signing of Colombian winger from Porto

Liverpool have completed the signing of Colombian winger Luis Diaz from FC Porto in Portugal on Sunday, a day before the January transfer window deadline day.

The Reds hijacked the signing from Tottenham Hotspur, who first made the approach to sign the winger from Porto earlier in January. Up until the signing was announced, Tottenham Hotspur looked to be in pole position for the winger’s signing, but Liverpool swooped in with a £50 million bid for a player who Jurgen Klopp rates very highly.

The Colombia international is currently away in Argentina with Colombia for their World Cup qualifier game against Argentina. He had his medical done in Argentina and also signed his contract as the club raced against time to register him for the rest of the season.

Diaz, 25, signed a five-and-a-half year contract with Liverpool in the standout deal of the winter window in Europe. He will move to Anfield immediately after the international break is done and will resume active duty with the Reds, as they chase Manchester City at the top of the Premier League table.

Liverpool statement on Diaz signing

Liverpool released a statement after his signing on his website which reads: “Liverpool Football Club have completed the signing of Luis Diaz from FC Porto, subject to the successful granting of a work permit and international clearance.

“The 25-year-old has signed a long-term contract with the Reds after passing a medical and finalising personal terms.

“Diaz will arrive on Merseyside once he has completed international duty with Colombia, who face Argentina in a World Cup qualifier in Cordoba on Tuesday evening.

“He joins Liverpool after two-and-a-half seasons with FC Porto, where he made 125 appearances and scored 41 goals, and will wear the No.23 shirt.

“The forward faced the Reds twice in this season’s Champions League group stage with the Portuguese side and had netted 14 times in 18 league runouts this term.

“He had previously represented Barranquilla FC and Junior FC in his homeland before making the switch to Europe in 2019.

“To date, Diaz has 31 caps for Colombia, with seven goals for his country.”

Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp has been a big fan of the Colombian and reportedly asked the board to sign him in the summer. Spurs boss Antonio Conte is also a fan of the forward and had hoped to sign the 25-year-old in the January window.

Conte and Diaz’s agents held talks over his move which were reported to be positive, but Liverpool jumped in at the last minute to hijack the deal and secure the player who their boss had always wanted.

Klopp: I could not be happier to have signed Diaz

Klopp spoke to Liverpool’s official website after Diaz’s signing was announced. “I could not be happier that we’ve been able to get this deal done and bring Luis to Liverpool,” he said.

“I have always been a believer in only signing players in January if you would want to sign them in the summer, and that’s very much the case with Luis.

“He is an outstanding player and someone we’ve been tracking for a very long time.

“We believe he has everything needed to fit into our way and adapt to the Premier League, both physically and mentally. He is a player who is hungry for success and knows you have to fight to get what you want. He is a fighter, no doubt. He’s a skilful team player who has always the goal in mind.

“This team deserved to add quality and when we played against Luis earlier this season, we saw what a danger he is, how fast he is and how his mentality was to help his team.

“I also must make clear my appreciation to our ownership and football operations team for how they have managed to act so decisively to get this done.

“Luis is a player we believe will make us better now and in the future. He is the player we really wanted and they’ve made it happen, so I am very happy.”

Diaz was the joint-top scorer at last year’s Copa America and has scored 14 goals in 18 Portuguese Primeira Liga matches for Porto this season.

Chelsea interested in Leeds United forward

Chelsea are weighing up a £36 million move for Leeds United Brazilian forward Raphinha as they seek to bolster their squad ahead of a top four battle.

The Blues are reportedly interested in Raphinha who is also attracting interest from West Ham United and Liverpool. Chelsea’s interest, however, is said to be spurred by the desire to prevent both clubs, who are their top four rivals, from strengthening their sides ahead of the clutch part of the season.

The Blues have been following Raphinha for a while but with Timo Werner and Christian Pulisic in their ranks, a deal for the Brazilian could be hard to pull. Should they make their interest known to Leeds, they will have little to nothing to fear from Liverpool who have been linked with FC Porto’s Luis Diaz and are reported to be closing in on a deal for him.

However, they will have to act fast if they want to land Raphinha as transfer insider Gianluigi Longari has reported that West Ham have made the first move by already approaching Leeds for the Brazilian.

Leeds, however, are not looking to sell as they are in a dangerous zone of the table, just above the relegation zone. Raphinha is a prized asset and has been one of Marcelo Bielsa’s key men this season. They have turned down West Ham’s approach but face an uphill battle to keep the player, who is one of the PL’s brightest stars.

Bayern Munich are also reported to be interested in the winger and could tempt Raphinha out of England.

Bayern Munich step up plans to sign Chelsea player

Reports claim that Bayern have now stepped up their interest in Andreas Christensen who they see as a replacement for Niklas Süle, who will be leaving the Allianz Arena at the end of the season.

Christensen will be a free agent in the summer but Chelsea are hoping to get him to sign a contract extension. He has not had much football under his belt this season due to COVID-19 and niggling injuries. Thomas Tuchel also found a solution in his absence and as such, the Dane is now a fringe player at the club.

Tuchel admitted that Christensen’s lack of game-time is partly the cause of the defender stalling on contract negotiations with the club.

The 25-year-old is demanding €10 million which neither Chelsea nor Bayern are prepared to offer according to Sky Germany.

Chelsea legend encourages club to keep Christensen

Chelsea legend Gianfranco Zola has suggested to the club that they should keep Andreas Christensen moving into next season.

The 25-year-old is one of three key defensive options with expiring contracts in the summer. All of Christensen, Cesar Azpilicueta and Antonio Rudiger could be leaving the club if deals are not finalised soon.

Zola has now come out to urge the Blues to prioritise keeping Christensen due to his youth.

“We are talking about two of them being key players and have been very successful at the club. Right now, they are playing all the time — that is Rudiger and Azpilicueta,” Zola told The Sun.

“The third one (Christensen) hasn’t played as much but is the youngest.

“You don’t want to lose players when they have been so good like Azpilicueta and Rudiger.

“At the same time you don’t want to lose a good prospect like Christensen.

“I think we will see two stay — but don’t ask me the names

“Luckily, I am not Tuchel and it is very easy for me not to answer the question.

“I would maybe keep the young one and one other.”

Jurgen Klopp eyeing Victor Osimhen as Roberto Firmino replacement

New reports have emerged linking Victor Osimhen with a move away from Napoli, this time, to Liverpool.

The Reds are reportedly targeting the Napoli forward as a replacement for Roberto Firmino who is expected to leave Anfield at the end of the season.

Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp is currently looking towards rebuilding the squad in the summer, after barely making any changes for more than three seasons. Firmino’s exit looks to be the start of the rebuild as the Reds prepare to say goodbye to one of their longest-serving players on the current squad.

The Reds have all but signed Luis Diaz from FC Porto in Portugal according to reports as a first step to that rebuild and are reportedly monitoring Paulo Dybala whose contract situation at Juventus is unsure.

Contracts for Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah are being discussed, but with the last member of that fearsome front three, Firmino, likely to be exiting, Klopp is said to want the Nigerian as his replacement.

Spanish transfer website Fichajes.net claims that Klopp and Liverpool are in love with Victor Osimhen and view him as a long term heir to Firmino’s throne.

Earlier in the January transfer window, Arsenal and Newcastle United we’re linked with a move for the Napoli front man, who was priced at £60 million. Fichajes made it clear that Osimhen will finish the season with Napoli, but Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis will be open to offers for the big striker.

Klopp debunks news of Origi exit in January

Divock Origi’s future at Liverpool has been a subject of speculation this season and offers have been made for the striker. However, Belgian journalist Sacha Tavolieri, via LFC Transfer Room, revealed that the player will remain a Liverpool player till at least the end of the season.

Liverpool received approaches from Atalanta and Fenerbahçe – the latter came with a generous offer for both player and club according to Tavolieri – but Klopp blocked any moves for his chief backup striker.

Tavolieri also claimed that Origi was open to a transfer move to the Turkish side especially but Klopp stood in his way. 

Spurs seeking out replacements after Adama Traore move fails

Tottenham Hotspur have lost the race to sign Adama Traore from Wolverhampton Wanderers but have begun to identify alternative targets to the Spaniard.

Spurs boss Antonio Conte faces a key obstacle in signing his preferred wingers in the January transfer window, as his frustrations over recruitment of targets continue. A deal was supposedly struck with Wolves for the 26-year-old Traore but the player was unsure about the move to North London where he would have been converted into a right wing-back.

Instead, Traore opted for a loan move to Barcelona that, according to reports, is all but official with a medical scheduled for Friday. Another key point to note is that Spurs reportedly offered Traore £120,000-a-week to sign but many unconfirmed reports claim that Traore chose to move to Camp Nou for figures even lesser than that.

Spurs are not giving up, as they reportedly have alternative targets to fall back on after failing to land one of the Premier League’s best dribblers and ball carriers. The Athletic reports, however, that Matt Doherty must first be moved on to make room for any of the alternatives.

Middlesbrough’s 21-year-old Djed Spence, currently on loan at Nottingham Forest, is one of the targets and is valued at around £15 million. However, he will not be able to join up with the Spurs squad until his loan spell concludes at the end of the season.

Colombian winger Luis Diaz could also become a Spurs player soon, even as reports claim that Conte would keep him in attack. Spurs have also reportedly had a £38 million bid already turned down by FC Porto for Diaz this week, but remain confident of landing the right winger.

Spurs fans worried about poor January transfer window activity

Conte’s appointment was seen as a way for the club to get back to the top and attract top talents. The 52-year-old was fresh from a hugely successful stint with Inter Milan and rejected the job in the summer, leading to the appointment of Nuno Espirito Santo.

The Italian joined after a promise of being backed in the transfer window but with the first window of Conte’s tenure almost shutting and no significant activity in the transfer market by Spurs, fans have begun to worry.

Conte’s tactical nous depends on marauding wingbacks who can contribute equally in attack and defence, and Traore was supposedly fancied by Conte for that role on the right of his formation. The Spaniard has slipped from their grasp, and time is running out for any reinforcements.

There have been no departures either as the club has been unable to sell the players they consider surplus to requirements like Doherty, Tanguy Ndombele and Dele Alli.

Spurs urged to go after Brighton talent

Tariq Lamptey has been suggested to the Spurs hierarchy by former Leeds United attacker Noel Whelan as a solution to the club’s wingback issues.

Lamptey left Chelsea for Brighton and Hove Albion in 2020 in search of regular game time and has since found success with the Seagulls. His performances under manager Graham Potter – who is linked to many top jobs in England – is one of the reasons that Brighton play so well currently.

Lamptey is now attracting attention from his former club Chelsea, as well as other clubs in the league and Whelan has advised that Spurs get in on the action and match his £50 million valuation.

“I think Lamptey would definitely make more sense than Traore, that’s for sure,” Whelan told Football Insider.

“Defending isn’t exactly Traore’s strong suit, especially one-on-one defending. Yes, he’s got power. Yes, he’s got pace. But defending is an art and something which takes time to perfect.”  

Erling Haaland speaks on reasons for outburst against Dortmund

Erling Haaland has explained why he spoke out against Borussia Dortmund early in the January transfer window as speculation over his future continues.

The 21-year-old Norwegian is likely to leave the Westfalenstadion after his release clause kicks in at the end of the season with several clubs interested in the striker. Borussia Dortmund are also hoping to be able to keep the player, whose contract still runs until the summer of 2023.

However, with his agent Mino Raiola cooking up a storm in the media and the big money approach of several clubs to the German side and the player’s entourage, Dortmund look to be fighting a losing battle in their bid to keep Haaland at the club at least until his contract runs out in 2023.

As a result, Dortmund chief Hans-Joachim Watzke came out with a statement earlier in the transfer window in which he gave Haaland an ultimatum to decide if he would be staying at the club beyond this season, or leaving. Watzke explained that this ultimatum was to help the club plan for life after the most prolific striker to ever don the black and yellow jersey of Dortmund.

Haaland lashed out at the ultimatum in a post-match interview earlier in the month, after scoring two more goals for the club. He told journalists that he would take immediate action on his future, comments which have sparked an even bigger frenzy for all involved as the battle for his signature heats up.

The big Norwegian has now come out to explain why he lashed out at the club, who he admitted he was only focused on for the rest of the season.

“I felt it was time for me to say something. Many others were talking, so that was it,” Haaland said in a recent interview with Sky Sports Germany.

“And now I really don’t want to say much more about it. What was said, was said, and we move forward.” 

Haaland claims Leicester City man is a key inspiration

The 21-year-old striker is the third youngest football player to reach the 100-goal career milestone, behind legends Ronaldo De Lima and Pele. For Dortmund, he has scored a staggering 80 goals in just 79 appearances and is less than 50 goals shy of the 200 career goals milestone.

Yet, his hunger for more keeps him going, making him one of Europe’s deadliest finishers. His motivation, however, comes from one of the unlikeliest of players.

In the interview with Sky Sports Germany, Haaland says he watches Jamie Vardy regularly to learn more about finishing, and described the Leicester City and Premier League legend as the “best in the world” in getting past defenders.

He said: “Not studying, but I’ve been watching a lot of players. Let’s take an example, the run in behind the centre-back when the number 10 has the ball.

“You maybe have the best in the world at that in Jamie Vardy, I’ve been looking a lot at him on exactly this.”

Vardy holds multiple records in Leicester and a few in the Premier League, and at the age of 34, doesn’t look to be slowing down soon. Many fans wonder what could have been of the Englishman if he had bloomed earlier, but since he hit his stride at the age of 29, he hasn’t looked back.

Haaland looks to the Foxes star for inspiration, and believes he can improve every aspect of his game like Vardy.

“I think I can improve on everything. If you say I am good at finishing, I can improve my finishing a lot,” Haaland explained.

“I can become faster, so I can improve that. I can become stronger, so I can improve that.”

The former Red Bull Salzburg man, however, stated that he has only one career goal, which is to remain injury-free. At 21, he has missed a substantial number of games due to injury, prompting thoughts that his numbers could be a lot more if he had stayed fit.

“But if I should improve one thing, it would be to not get injured, because if I am not injured, I will play a lot more games, and I will deliver even better,” Haaland added.

“If you were to ask what my goals are for 2022, it is to not be injured, and the goals for the rest of my career are not be injured. That’s the main thing.”

Barcelona target Adama Traore as Ousmane Dembele replacement

ESPN reports that Barcelona has identified Wolverhampton Wanderers forward Adama Traore as a replacement for the embattled Ousmane Dembele.

The news outlet goes on to report that the club will go after Traore if Dembele does not sign a new contract at the club.

Dembele and Barcelona have been embroiled in a transfer battle leading to the club, through its technical director Mateu Alemany to announce to the world that Dembele has been given an ultimatum to leave the club by the end of the transfer window or face ostracism.

This elicited a response from the Frenchman via his Instagram page. Dembele, who has never been a big social media person posted a lengthy message where he claimed he was being blackmailed by several characters concerning his Barcelona future, and assured followers that his agent is on the case.

The 24-year-old’s agent, Moussa Sissoko, has since reinitiated discussions with Barcelona but there seems to have been no progress with the ultimatum deadline drawing near.

ESPN now claims that Barcelona is lining up former La Masia talent Traore as the Frenchman’s replacement should the ultimatum elapse. Traore is a target of Tottenham Hotspur who have reportedly tabled a bid before Wolves – that is being considered – to take the Spanish international from Molineux to the Tottenham Hotspur stadium.

Barcelona January window dependent on Dembele situation

Barcelona is in a financial crisis and have to reduce their wage cao in order to secure much needed funds to run the club. However, Dembele holds the key to a successful January window for the club.

The club plans to take the money for Dembele and inject it back into their window if he chooses to leave, or to spread out the remaining amortisation payments on his transfer fee from Borussia Dortmund and backload his salary to make room on their wage bill.

Manager Xavi Hernandez asked for reinforcements in attack following another unfortunate injury to Ansu Fati, which also led to the club identifying Traore as a possible replacement.

The former Aston Villa forward has 18 months left on his contract and Wolves are ready to cash in on the player who reportedly is looking for an exit from the club.

Xavi to Sissoko: Dembele won’t play if he stays

A move away from the Camp Nou may benefit Dembele, however, as Spanish outlet Marca reports that Xavi is all but done with the player.

The meeting between Dembele’s agent Sissoko and the club on Tuesday, January 25 reportedly ended in Xavi telling the 24-year-old’s agent to look for an exit for his client if they cannot accept the club’s demands.

Dembele and his agent are demanding a big payout on the new contract Barcelona are offering and the Catalan club is unwilling to renege on their already existing offer to the Frenchman. Xavi told Sissoko, according to Marca, that the club would prefer Dembele extends his stay at the Camp Nou and if the offer doesn’t work for the Frenchman, then his time at Barcelona is up.

With Sissoko still pushing for a big payout for his client, an exit may eventually be on the cards for Dembele as the club begins to plan for life without their second most expensive signing.

Liverpool monitoring Paulo Dybala contract situation at Juventus

Liverpool have reportedly set their sights on Juventus midfielder Paulo Dybala, whose contract situation at the Turin club is on the ropes.

The Argentina international is out of a contract at Juventus in the summer and had begun talks with the Bianconeri to sign an extension. However, with the club reportedly agreeing a £63 million deal with Fiorentina for the transfer of Dusan Vlahovic, the contract talks have paused and his future at the club has been questioned.

Signing Vlahovic means that The Old Lady will have to free up some space in their wage bill and with Dybala earning around £250,000-a-week, allowing him to leave the club would be in their best interests as they prepare for Vlahovic.

Meanwhile, the Argentine is not short of admirers, with Serie A leaders Inter Milan reportedly lurking around to snap up the Argentine. Liverpool is now the newest club in the mix, as they have been reported by Daily Mail to be preparing a big offer for the midfielder.

Reports from Italy claim that Juventus intend to pick up the contract talks with Dybala after the January transfer window closes, with an offer of a lower salary. It remains to be seen if Dybala will accept the offer and choose to stay.

If not, Liverpool is ready to do battle with Inter Milan for the former US Palermo man’s signature in the summer.

Dybala has played 23 times for Juventus in all competitions this season, scoring 11 goals and providing four assists. 

Inter are big favourites to sign Dybala, agent claims

In an interview with Italian radio station Kiss Kiss Napoli, player agent Fulvio Valcareggi made a bold declaration that Liverpool may want to be wary of in their pursuit of Dybala.

Valcareggi does not represent the Argentine, however, he is privy to insider transfer information as a football agent. It is on the confidence of said information that he declared in his interview that Dybala will be a Nerazzurri player next season.

“Paulo Dybala will go to Inter, you’ll see,” Valcareggi declared on Radio Kiss Kiss Napoli.

“His rapport with the Juventus directors has completely broken down. Everything is in place for him to go to Inter.

“It’ll be a great transfer coup for the Nerazzurri, it’s all done!”

This is not the first time that Dybala has been linked with Inter, however. The Serie A leaders’ director general, Beppe Marotta, worked with Dybala in the past and was the man who originally signed him to Juventus from Palermo in 2015 for €41 million.

Arsenal striker hunt continues with Victor Osimhen the latest target

Arsenal have reportedly entered a battle with Newcastle United over Napoli’s Victor Osimhen as they continue their desperate search for a striker.

Newcastle United have been in the market enquiring about every possible player in a bid to build a super team to help them stay in the Premier League and compete for major honours next season. They have already signed Chris Wood from Burnley but are reportedly interested in Duvan Zapata of Atalanta and now, Osimhen of Napoli.

Arsenal are now reportedly ready to challenge the nouveau-riche club from Tyneside for the Nigerian striker’s signature as they continue their own desperate search to replace the ostracised Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.

The Gunners were dealt a big blow as their main target for the role, Dusan Vlahovic chose instead to move to Juventus’ earlier in the week. They have since identified a few more attackers including former Chelsea man Diego Costa and Real Sociedad striker Alexander Isak, who is also reported to have turned down a move to the club in the middle of the season.

Arsenal are reportedly ready to match Newcastle United’s £60 million bid for Osimhen.

The Nigerian, who had to sit out his country’s run in the ongoing African Cup of Nations in Cameroon due to a facial injury, moved to the Neapolitan club in 2020 for £66 million. The transfer is currently under scrutiny, as it has been claimed that there were some discrepancies with it.

Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis, who recently let club cult hero Lorenzo Insigne sign for Toronto FC in the MLS ahead of next season, is reportedly willing to listen to offers for the Nigerian, who is also becoming a fan favourite at the club.

Arsenal is reportedly ready to splash the same cash initially earmarked for Vlahovic on Osimhen, who is also currently regarded as one of the world’s best strikers. De Laurentiis will listen to offers as they come, according to reports.

Diego Costa makes decision on Arsenal move

Former Chelsea and Atlético de Madrid striker Diego Costa is now a free agent after spending one year in Brazil with Atlético Mineiro.

The former Spanish international scored five goals in 19 games for the Brazilian club, as they lifted their first league title in 59 years; their second ever title. He also played a key role in the club’s run to a cup triumph to earn Mineiro their first ever domestic double.

The 33-year-old, according to earlier reports, held talks with the Gunners in Brazil but had made no decision. However, it now appears that Costa will be disappointing Mikel Arteta as he has chosen elsewhere to continue his career.

Struggling Serie A club Salernitana are the leaders to seal Costa’s signature and reports claim that they are onfident of concluding a deal for the Spaniard this week.

Walter Sabatini told TuttoSalernitana.com: “Diego Costa is a matter still in movement, a miracle could happen, but so far it has not happened.”

Salernitana are currently last in the Italian Serie A with just 10 points from their opening 22 league games – eight points from safety.

Aubameyang excluded from training camp

Back at Arsenal, Aubameyang is still being subjected to humiliating treatment after being dropped from the club’s mid-season training camp in Dubai in favour of Jack Wilshere, who is not contracted to the club – or any club for that matter.

The former Gunners midfielder has been training at Arsenal’s facilities to stay match fit as he looks for a way back into professional football, more than a year after he became a free agent.

Arteta opted to take him along to the club’s training camp in Dubai in the place of Aubameyang, while remaining coy on if Aubameyang will ever regain his place in the squad.

Lyon deny reports of a deal with Newcastle United over Bruno Guimaraes

Olympique Lyonnais has refuted claims that a deal with Newcastle United for 29-year-old midfielder Bruno Guimaraes has been finalised.

The Brazil international has been linked with a move away from Parc OL since the beginning of the season with Arsenal being touted as his next destination. Newcastle United came into the picture recently and tabled a £33.5 million bid to Lyon, which many sources claimed the club accepted.

However, in a short statement on the club’s website, the French club has vehemently denied all the reports of a deal being struck for the midfielder between both clubs.

The club wrote, on Wednesday, in a statement on their website: “Olympique Lyonnais categorically denies the false information disseminated by many media reporting an agreement between Newcastle and OL for the transfer of Brazilian international midfielder Bruno Guimaraes.

“In this transfer window period where the slightest rumor is often presented as reality, Olympique Lyonnais reminds that only information officially released by the club is to be taken into consideration.”

Earlier reports from multiple sources claimed that the club had accepted the bid from the Magpies, who are pushing for multiple reinforcements ahead under their new Saudi-backed owners. The club from Tyneside have already spent over £30 million to sign Kieran Trippier from Atlético de Madrid and Chris Wood from Burnley.

More signings are expected in the middle of the park for Newcastle, which led to the club tabling a bid for the Arsenal-linked Guimaraes. The sources confirmed that Guimaraes is open to leaving Lyon, which could have led to the media reports – now debunked as rumours by Lyon – making the rounds earlier on Wednesday.

Guimaraes: We play like robots in France

Guimaraes signed for Lyon on a four-year deal from Brazilian side Atletico Paranaense in January 2020. However, his latest comments on his time in France suggests that he is ready to jump ship.

In an interview with Globo Esporte shared on Monday, Guimaraes suggested that his talent is being stifled in Ligue 1.

“In France, there are moments where we play like robots, nobody tries to dribble, to find a pass, for example,” he said.

“That irritates me sometimes, it is a bit frustrating. I think that those who have talent should profit from that, try to dribble, try to link moves. If you do that, your game will be complete.”

He went on to add: “My objective at Lyon is to be champion… We are doing well in the Europa League, a competition that we have begun well in. Ligue 1 is very difficult.”

However, with the latest developments from the Lyon camp, it is safe to say that there will be no immediate jumping of ship for the Brazilian, who was even reported to be undergoing a medical in Brazil ahead of the supposed move to Newcastle.

Guimaraes has made 25 appearances in all competitions for Lyon this season, registering six assists.

Arsenal defender open to quitting club after playing zero games since 2019

Arsenal defender on loan at Olympique de Marseille, William Saliba, is open to making his loan move permanent in the summer, according to reports.

Saliba signed for Arsenal from Saint-Etienne in 2019 to much fanfare as the Gunners touted him as one for the future. However, the 20-year-old defender is yet to make his debut for the club, having only been fielded in two different pre-season games before the 2020/21 and 2021/22 seasons.

Two loan spells later, Saliba is now showing the level that made him attractive to most top clubs in the year he signed for Arsenal. The young defender is now open to remaining in Ligue 1 with Marseille for more playing time, as he has become a key figure in the centre of the club’s defence.

Marseille, however, will have to fulfill one condition to be able to keep Saliba beyond this season: they will have to qualify for the UEFA Champions League. The top three Ligue 1 teams every season qualify for the tournament with the first two going straight into the group stages and the third placed team having to duke it out in the playoffs.

Marseille currently sit in third place on 40 points with a game in hand and have conceded the least goals in the league (16) as well as kept the most clean sheets. Saliba has been a key part of this achievement with his impressive defensive abilities.

Barring any change of fortunes for the club, Saliba could get his wish of playing Champions League football with Marseille and Arsenal will be subjected to another loss in a time of talent scarcity.

Arteta: Saliba in Arsenal’s long-term plans

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta, in September 2021, told journalists that Saliba is in Arsenal’s long-term plans, despite the club spending a combined £70 million on defensive signings Ben White and Takehiro Tomiyasu in the summer window of the 2021/22 season.

Speaking to journalists in September, Arteta said: “He will come back for pre-season and he will be with us. Hopefully he will come back after playing a number of games and his performance raising and his development progressing in the right way. That’s why we made that decision.

“I know that sometimes it’s difficult to explain or understand after the money that the club has spent trying to bring him in, to send him on loan.”

Arteta may get his wish to count on Saliba next season as Marseille is currently battling a FIFA transfer ban which could prevent them from signing any players, including Saliba, to a permanent deal.

The French club got slapped with a ban for signing Senegal international Pape Gueye after the player signed a pre-contract agreement with Watford. The ban has been appealed and Marseille are waiting to know their fate from the Court of Arbitration for Sport, where the case is being judged.

Arsenal offered Luka Jovic loan signing opportunity

Elsewhere, Arsenal have been offered the chance to sign Luka Jovic from Real Madrid on a loan deal, according to reports.

The Gunners have officially been dealt a blow by long-term striker target Dusan Vlahovic, who has made it clear that he wants to stay in the Serie A. Juventus have reportedly tabled a mega money bid for the striker, ending all hopes of an improved bid from Arsenal.

Arteta, desperate to bring in a new striker before the transfer window closes next Monday, has now been offered Vlahovic’s countryman, Jovic as a short term solution to his striker problems at the club.

24-year-old Jovic continues to struggle for game time at Madrid. The former Eintracht Frankfurt striker has not made a single league start this season for Los Blancos, and is reportedly open to leaving the Santiago Bernabeu after an uneventful four seasons at the club.