Arsenal transfers: Romano delivers verdict on two deals worth £168m, including ‘underrated’ Prem star
Fabrizio Romano has provided an update on speculation that Arsenal are interested in Everton’s Jarrad Branthwaite and Bayern Munich’s Matthijs de Ligt.
The Gunners have been rumours that Mikel Arteta is looking at a number of possibilities in January with rumours they could sign a centre-back, a midfielder or a striker this winter.
However, before the transfer window opened, journalist Dean Jones claimed that Arsenal and Arteta were prioritised a move for a new centre-back in January.
Jones told GiveMeSport on Christmas Eve: “My understanding is that if Arsenal do go for a striker, and obviously there will be a temptation to do that right now because they’ve got this opportunity to win the Premier League, they’re going to have to raise some funds somewhere along the way.
“The priority for Arsenal is to sign a centre-back. That’s what they’re looking for. Any money they do have is probably primarily going to go towards that. And then they’ll think about bringing in an extra midfielder possibly on loan and what do they do about a number nine?
“So again, Ivan Toney at £70m, Victor Osimhen at £120m – extremely difficult to do. But there are players within the squad that perhaps could be freed up and you can start to raise that cash.”
There has been a lot of talk that Arsenal need to bring in a new striker this month in order to have a chance of winning the Premier League this season.
But the latest rumours appear to back up Jones’ theory that a centre-back is their priority at the moment with £100m-rated Branthwaite – who is also interesting Manchester United – and De Ligt reportedly two of their top targets.
There are claims that Bayern Munich would command around the same fee of £68m that they paid to Juventus when they signed De Ligt in 2022.
But Romano doesn’t expect Arsenal to be able to make a move for either De Ligt or Branthwaite in the winter market.
Romano wrote in his Caught Offside column: “Matthijs de Ligt was recently mentioned as a name on Arsenal’s list, and of course he’s a top player, but I’m told nothing will happen in January. He’s currently injured, though the injury is not serious and he should be back in 7-10 days, so it’s nothing to do with that.
“Still, there’s nothing happening for now. In the summer, everything can change and many English clubs are keeping close eye to the situation so let’s see what happens there but I don’t have concrete updates on Arsenal or any other club as it’s not something to be decided now.
“Everton defender Jarrad Branthwaite has also been linked with the Gunners, but my understanding is that we’re just seeing normal scouting from many clubs, again with nothing concrete at this stage. In my opinion he’s very good player, probably underrated; but it’s also fair to say that Everton want to keep him and maybe a sale could be considered in the summer transfer window.”
