According to Turkish journalist Ekrem Konur, Premier League side Arsenal have so far made the best offer to sign Sassuolo’s defensive midfielder Manuel Locatelli.
The journalist wrote on Twitter: “Arsenal have given Sassuolo the best financial offer for Manuel Locatelli.
“Locatelli, however, wants to play for Juventus.”
💰#Arsenal have given Sassuolo the best financial offer for Manuel Locatelli.
🤝Locatelli, however, wants to play for #Juventus. #Rossi has no choice but to sign with Juventus.
📲Edu #Gaspar will give a speech to convince Locatelli. pic.twitter.com/Kth8fB70Oy
— Ekrem KONUR (@Ekremkonur) July 14, 2021
Can Arsenal get their hands on Manuel Locatelli?
With Granit Xhaka heading out of the Emirates this summer, Mikel Arteta has to bring in a partner for Thomas Partey before the next season kicks off. And Manuel Locatelli could be the solution to all of Arsenal’s midfield woes.
The 23-year-old had a pretty solid European Championship, scoring two goals in five matches for the Azzurri but it will be a real uphill battle for the Gunners to be able to sign him, for more reasons than one.
Firstly, thanks to his fine performances in the Euros, Sassuolo might quote a higher price for the midfielder, especially since he has two more years left on his current deal.
Arsenal are already planning to spend big on Ben White and after that, they also want to bring in a new centre-forward. So it will be interesting to see how much budget is Arteta left with when it comes to signing Manuel Locatelli.
Secondly, the 23-year-old has his sights set on joining Juventus so it will be nearly impossible for the North London side to leapfrog over the Old Lady
Juve have already made an unofficial enquiry about Manuel Locatelli but so far they are not ready to meet Sassuolo’s €40m asking price.
Ideally, Locatelli is not going to consider joining Arsenal ahead of Juventus but if the Bianconeri drop their interest in the defensive midfielder then there’s every chance he could look to secure a move to the Premier League.
