Fabrizio Romano reveals Arsenal talks with £20m player now in ‘the final stages’

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Transfer journalist Fabrizio Romano has provided a contract update on Arsenal defender Takehiro Tomiyasu.

Arsenal are closing in on securing the long-term future of Takehiro Tomiyasu.

Negotiations between the club and the Japanese ace have been going on for some time. However, due to the player’s recurrent injury issues, not all Arsenal fans are keen on the thought of Tomiyasu extending his stay at the Emirates Stadium.

Arsenal paid £19.8 million to sign Tomiyasu from Italian club Bologna in the summer of 2021. He is certainly a useful player for Mikel Arteta to have at his disposal, as he can slot in in any position across the defensive line, due to his versatility and two-footedness. 

However, ever since his arrival at the Emirates Stadium, the 25-year-old has suffered regular injury problems. Fitness issues have restricted him to just 13 Premier League outings so far this season, of which just five have been starts. He is currently unavailable due to his participation with Japan at the Asia Cup.

Despite these fitness concerns, Arsenal remain determined to keep Tomiyasu on the books at the club. According to Fabrizio Romano, as quoted by GiveMeSport, “Tomiyasu is not leaving on loan, for sure. They’re very happy with him. So I don’t see Tomiasyu leaving, and I think the contract extension is now at the final stages, discussing the final points. I think in the next month for Arsenal it is going to be important to extend Tomiyasu and Ben White, both players.”

Should Arsenal offer Takehiro Tomiyasu a new contract now?

If Tomiyasu can stay fit then he has the talent to establish himself as a regular starter for the club. Certainly, there is an opportunity for him to make the left-back berth his own. The regular first choice in that position, Oleksandr Zinchenko, is considered something of a defensive liability. 

Tomiyasu is far more solid in one-on-one situations and is a more effective aerial presence. He has also proven himself to be capable of replicating the Ukrainian’s inverted interpretation of the role, which sees the Arsenal left-back drift into the middle of the park and become an auxiliary midfielder when Arteta’s side are in possession of the ball.

His ability to stay fit is certainly the big issue, though. Arsenal are taking something of a risk by offering Tomiyasu fresh terms at this stage. There is an argument that they would be wiser to wait until the end of the campaign and let Tomiyasu’s availability between now and the end of the season inform their decision.