It’s a peculiar brand of poetry when a former player hammers the final nail into your coffin. Kai Havertz did exactly that, rounding Robert Sanchez late on to ensure Arsenal are this year’s first Carabao Cup finalists at the expense of his old employers. Riding the coattails of a breathless 3-2 victory at Stamford Bridge in the first leg, Mikel Arteta’s boys navigated a tricky second fixture to put Chelsea to the sword. It wasn’t entirely smooth sailing—Gabriel Martinelli was left fuming after his penalty shouts fell on deaf ears, and Gabriel Magalhaes really ought to have buried a golden chance from open play. But the job is done. Now, the Gunners can kick back and watch Manchester City scrap it out with Newcastle to see who they’ll be facing under the Wembley arch.
Truth be told, Arteta was nursing a bit of a selection headache before a ball was even kicked. Martin Odegaard was a notable absentee, and Bukayo Saka—unsurprisingly missing after picking up a knock at Leeds—had to be deputised by Noni Madueke. Stripped of their primary creative sparks, Arsenal looked noticeably blunted going forward. They were also utterly flummoxed by a genuinely bizarre defensive set-piece tactic from the Blues. Rather than packing the box to deal with Arsenal’s notoriously lethal corners, Chelsea simply evacuated. By leaving three men up the pitch, they threatened a devastating counter, forcing Arsenal to pull their own bodies back out of the penalty area. Fair play to Chelsea, the dark arts worked perfectly, neutralizing Arsenal’s dead-ball threat completely.
With a brutal run of Premier League and FA Cup fixtures looming, Arteta will be desperate to get Saka and Odegaard out of the treatment room. But a lack of cutting edge might also explain the sheer audacity of Arsenal’s latest move in the transfer market. Forget minor tweaks; the North Londoners have reportedly agreed a blockbuster swap deal with Atletico Madrid. The Gunners are shipping Viktor Gyökeres and €50 million over to the Spanish capital in exchange for Julian Alvarez. It’s a massive statement of intent.
Chelsea, meanwhile, are scrambling for answers in the market. Rebuffed by Atalanta right-back Marco Palestra—who clearly didn’t fancy the chaotic project on offer at Stamford Bridge—they’ve now pivoted to Everton’s Iliman Ndiaye as an alternative to Aston Villa’s Morgan Rogers. They’re also lurking in the shadows for Trabzonspor’s €50m-rated midfield prodigy Christ Inao Oulaï, though they’ll have to fight off Barcelona, Spurs, and PSG after Barça’s scouts clocked the 20-year-old Ivorian at the World Cup.
It’s not just the London clubs throwing their weight around. Liverpool have pulled an absolute fast one on Newcastle, hijacking their move for Osasuna’s 22-year-old winger Victor Munoz by triggering his €40m release clause. The Reds might not be done there, either. Juventus midfielder Khephren Thuram has actively swerved a lucrative payday from Saudi outfit Al-Ahli, reportedly hanging on for an offer from Anfield or Old Trafford.
Speaking of Manchester United, they’re circling Barcelona outcast Marc Casado, who is ready to pack his bags over a lack of game time in Catalonia. But United might have a massive fight on their hands to keep their own skipper. José Mourinho—now pulling the strings at Real Madrid—has supposedly demanded the board trigger Bruno Fernandes’ €58m release clause. Real Madrid are clearly in the mood to clean house and rebuild; Florentino Perez is personally tapping up Bayern Munich’s Michael Olise, while simultaneously looking to rip up Dani Ceballos’ contract a year early to let the 29-year-old walk back to his boyhood club Real Betis for free.
Down in the Bundesliga, Borussia Dortmund are trying to play a blinder to land 1. FC Köln’s shooting star Said El Mala. They’re trying to sweeten a cut-price €30m deal (plus €5m in add-ons) by throwing in a sell-on clause and shipping two of their own players to Köln on loan. Elsewhere in Germany, Gladbach have fended off Eintracht Frankfurt and Juve to secure 17-year-old Swedish prospect Samin Mujevic from Malmö for a bargain €1m, signing him until 2030. We’re also seeing plenty of shuffling in the lower tiers: Noah Katterbach is looking for a way out of HSV and entertaining 2. Bundesliga offers after rejecting Nürnberg, Paderborn have snapped up former Bayern talent Oliver Batista Meier from Preußen Münster until 2029, and Werder Bremen have reached a full verbal agreement with SV Elversberg’s 23-year-old left-back Lasse Günther.
Back on English shores, Brighton are operating with their usual quiet efficiency. They’re ready to trigger the €5m clause for Venedig captain Michael Svoboda—snatching the Austrian international from under the noses of Gladbach and HSV—while scrambling to tie down midfielder Yasin Ayari to a bumper new deal. The kid’s had a stormer of a season, and Chelsea, Liverpool, Newcastle, and Tottenham have all taken notice. Meanwhile, Everton are kicking the tyres on a loan-to-buy deal for Lois Openda, with Juventus eager to wash their hands of the Belgian striker.
