At A Glance:
- Arsenal are looking to strengthen their ranks in the summer.
- A trio of Newcastle United players are on their transfer shortlist.
- The Magpies have now reportedly set prices for all three.
With them top of the Premier League and in the quarter-finals of the FA Cup and the Champions League, Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal could end the season with three trophies in their silverware cabinet – but they are still looking to strengthen.
The Gunners will be looking to re-focus this weekend as the March international break comes to an end and they first lock horns with Southampton.
Following that, a trip to Sporting CP is next on the agenda for Arteta and his men, who recently lost the Carabao Cup final 2-0 to Manchester City.
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It has the chance to be a monumental campaign for the capital club, who are required to sell at least one first-team player this summer to free up funds and space for further incomings.
Newcastle trio admired by Arsenal as Magpies set hefty asking prices
As a means of strengthening their ranks, Julian Alvarez of Atletico Madrid has long been admired by the Gunners – but the club are also targeting players who are currently playing in the Premier League.
A trio of Newcastle United players – Sandro Tonali, Anthony Gordon and Tino Livramento – are of interest to Arsenal it has been reported.
Livramento is being eyed by Arteta and his staff amid growing uncertainty over his future at St James’ Park and Tonali has attracted the interest of Arsenal alongside the likes of Manchester United.
Elsewhere, Sky Sports have reported that Arsenal have Gordon on their left-wing shortlist ahead of the summer transfer window opening.
According to The Telegraph, the Magpies are set to be ‘more pragmatic’ in the market but will only entertain offers if they reach their valuations.
The report insists that Eddie Howe and his entourage will hold off for in excess of £100 million for Gordon and Tonali given their importance to the team.
Tino Livramento – whose current deal expires in the summer of 2028 – will cost around the £60 million mark, which is the going rate for a highly-talented full-back like the 23-year-old.
Newcastle CEO speaks out about player sales this summer
Scarred by Alexander Isak’s move to Liverpool last summer, Newcastle’s chief executive, David Hopkinson, has admitted that letting key players leave could be on the agenda in the months to come.
“We haven’t got an overall strategy with regards [moving] players out,” Hopkinson claimed on the release of Newcastle’s accounts for the last financial year.
“We think through what players might or might not want to do this summer. But if an Isak-like scenario presents itself again, any player under contract is going to leave on our terms and we’re going to maximise the opportunity that might represent for the club.
“That absolutely does (mean extracting the maximum price). For me, Isak was a good sale (in terms of getting a British record fee).
“I wasn’t here for the Isak situation, so I don’t want to comment on something I didn’t see first-hand. What I do know is that players that leave this club will need to do so on our terms,” he concluded.
Hopkinson’s remarks are a huge shift from the messaging from his predecessor, Darren Eales, who insisted that selling their top stars – Isak included – was entirely not in the club’s plans.
