Arsenal have mostly been excellent with their transfer strategy in recent years.
The Gunners have signed incredible players under Mikel Arteta, but what has been more important is convincing those men to choose the Emirates Stadium over other attractive destinations.
Arsenal have players who are good enough to play for any club in the world, so interest in many of them is never really a surprise.
One player who had a lot of admirers before he joined Arsenal was Martin Zubimendi. Even Real Madrid were interested in him.
How much is Martin Zubimendi worth to Arsenal now?
It's certainly a lot more than the £51m we paid!
Martin Zubimendi suggests Real Madrid wanted to sign him
Arsenal signed Zubimendi for £51 million from Real Sociedad last summer.
The Spaniard was a wanted man across Europe for multiple transfer windows, and many big clubs chased his signature.
Everyone knows how close Liverpool came to signing Zubimendi before he rejected them, while the likes of Bayern Munich and Manchester City were also linked with a move to sign him.
Another club that was said to be keen on Zubimendi was Real Madrid, when Xabi Alonso was their manager last summer.
The Arsenal midfielder was asked about that interest recently, and he all but confirmed it by saying it was in the past.
Zubimendi said, as per El Desmarque: “I don’t have an answer, but I haven’t been paying much attention to all that.
“I think that’s in the past, and I have other things on my mind. It’s not a bad thing.”
Arsenal fans are forgetting how good Martin Zubimendi is
Zubimendi has had a tough few weeks and has come under enormous criticism.
Before the second leg at Sporting CP, the Spaniard struggled in and out of possession and looked nothing like his usual self.
However, as the saying goes, form is temporary and class is permanent.
Do you think Martin Zubimendi is underrated in the Arsenal fanbase?
Zubimendi was hailed as the best midfielder in Europe by some during the first half of the season, and he showed signs of that in his Man of the Match performance against Sporting.
Arsenal fans who are having a go at him should not forget how good he is. All of those big clubs wanted him for a reason, so everyone should continue to have faith.
We are convinced that Zubimendi will be back to his best very soon.
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