After the season Arsenal midfielder Granit Xhaka has had, talk of a summer departure is almost unfathomable.
Following a tumultuous few campaigns in north London to put it mildly, Xhaka has been reborn in the 2022/23 season with a new role in Mikel Arteta's team that were pushing for the Premier League title. The Swiss international has contributed to 14 goals this season from 45 appearances missing just one league game, showing his importance to the Gunners.
However, Bayer Leverkusen are now in advanced talks to sign Xhaka as per Fabrizio Romano, in a €15million (£13million) summer deal. Xhaka enters the final year of his Arsenal deal this summer, although the club have the option to extend it by a further 12 months. That now looks highly unlikely to happen with the former Borussia Monchengladbach man seeking a new challenge away from Emirates Stadium.
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Arsenal are already light in the middle of the park and allowing Xhaka to depart would appear surprising. Other than captain Martin Odegaard, the three other midfielders under contract by the north Londoners in Thomas Partey, Jorginho and Fabio Vieira either face uncertain futures or have struggled to adapt to life at the Gunners.
This is why numerous midfielders have been linked with a move to Mikel Arteta's side. West Ham's Declan Rice is the priority signing, football.london understands, with Moises Caicedo of Brighton also as an option alongside Martin Zubimendi, Mason Mount and Mohamed Kudus. Arsenal were unsuccessful in their attempts to sign Caicedo in January, but they could go back in for the Ecuador international this summer.
Financially, signing Caicedo and Rice will likely prove a challenge, but acquiring both cannot be entirely ruled out. As per The Times, Arsenal owner Stan Kroenke is set to back Arteta heavily during the summer transfer window, freeing up a huge budget that could be more than £200million.
Based on this fresh report the funds could therefore be available for the club to sign Caicedo and Rice while also strengthening other departments using funds acquired from player sales. To strengthen the midfield department, signing two players seemed likely and that was taking into account Xhaka remaining at the club.
However, the numerous reports seemingly confirming he will leave hints that there is real confidence on the side of Arsenal that Edu can pull off another impressive transfer window. Bringing both Caicedo and Rice to north London would certainly be seen as a statement window.
The latest valuations for both players reportedly stand at £120million for Rice and £80million for Caicedo although interest from other clubs could see both prices rise.
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