Arsenal reach out to sign surprise £35m star just before Aston Villa game
Arsenal are looking to sign a winger valued at around £35 million as they get ready to face Aston Villa in the Premier League. The Gunners meet Unai Emery’s team at Villa Park on Monday night, with kick-off set for 8pm.
Tuesday is transfer deadline day, and Premier League clubs are rushing to complete their final deals before the first cut-off at 11pm. Arsenal are no different—they still want to add a forward before the window closes.
Their main target is Atletico Madrid’s Julian Alvarez, who was left out of their latest La Liga match by manager Diego Simeone. However, Alvarez reportedly prefers a move to Barcelona, and Atletico won’t do business with their rivals. The Guardian says Arsenal are hopeful they can convince Alvarez to change his mind, but he told Mikel Arteta last week that Barcelona is his only choice.
Arsenal are also exploring other options. They didn’t try to sign PSG’s Bradley Barcola, who recently joined Liverpool in a £123 million deal. Instead, according to RMC Sport’s Fabrice Hawkins, Arsenal are interested in Lyon’s young winger Malick Fofana.
Fofana, 21, is a Belgium international and made 16 appearances last season for Lyon, missing almost six months with an ankle injury. In the 2023/24 season, he scored 11 goals, including six in the Europa League. Arsenal have contacted Lyon about signing Fofana, who recently scored in a 2-0 win over Toulouse, and personal terms shouldn’t be a problem. Lyon want about €40 million (£34.2 million) for him.
Lyon might be under pressure to sell after missing out on this season’s Champions League, losing 3-2 on aggregate to Fenerbahce in qualifying rounds.
The deal for Fofana is being compared to the signing of Christos Tzolis from Club Brugge earlier this summer for around £34 million. Tzolis has started well at Arsenal, with two assists in their 3-0 Community Shield win over Manchester City and a standout performance in their 3-0 Premier League win against Coventry.