A round-up of the latest Arsenal news as Bayern Munich forward Thomas Muller fires a warning to a Gunners star after UEFA drew the Champions League quarter-final ties.
Chelsea fear Arsenal will win the transfer race to sign Osimhen
Chelsea fear Arsenal or Paris Saint-Germain will win the transfer race for SSC Napoli forward Victor Osimhen this summer. That is according to TEAMtalk, which reports that the Gunners and PSG have stolen an edge on the Blues as they will not meet the Nigerian’s wage request.
Osimhen is asking for at least £200k-a/w to quit Napoli as the 25-year-old believes he is one of the best No9s in the world. Arsenal are happy to offer Osimhen the salary he is seeking to agree a transfer. But Chelsea refuse to break a salary structure that saw Mason Mount leave.
Arsenal and PSG are also in talks with Osimhen’s camp to try and position themselves at the front of the likely queue of clubs chasing his services. Chelsea have long been trying to coax the Nigerian to England. But the Blues’ reluctance to pay a top-tier salary could prove costly.
Read more about Arsenal and Chelsea’s interest in Osimhen’s summer transfer, here.
Wright fears Jorginho will cost Arsenal in the Champions League
Highbury hero Ian Wright fears teams will ‘target’ Jorginho the deeper Arsenal can go in the Champions League after his ‘ineffective’ performance against FC Porto. The 32-year-old left Wright rueing his role in Tuesday’s last 16 second leg after failing to influence their meeting.
Arsenal emerged victorious after David Raya secured a 4-2 win over Porto on penalties with two saves. He denied Wendell and Galeno as the Gunners enjoyed a perfect record from 12 yards out. But Mikel Arteta had hooked Jorginho after 83 minutes to bring Gabriel Jesus on.
Jorginho started to look leggy in the closing stages of regular time with the tie locked at 1-1 on aggregate. The Italian also failed to unlock Porto’s stern backline when on the ball. Now, Wright fears teams will target Jorginho the further Arsenal can go in the Champions League.
He told his Wrighty’s House podcast: “The problem I feel we might have is that if Jorginho is playing in those games – I think the more that’s on the line and the more we need to control games, the more Jorginho has a chance of playing – so, I think people will cater for him.
“And people will watch this game and think, ‘hmm…’ In the end, they took Jorginho off and remember, he’s a penalty taker.
“He was so ineffective today because he did not get the chance to turn and do his stuff. I think teams will probably target that because that has really curtailed us.”
Read more about what Wright has said about Jorginho in the Champions League, here.
Muller warns Havertz ‘I’m waiting for you’ in the quarter-finals
Muller has warned Kai Havertz that the Bayern Munich striker is ‘waiting’ for the Arsenal ace in the Champions League after UEFA drew the two teams to meet in the quarter-final. Arteta will welcome Thomas Tuchel’s side to Emirates Stadium for the first leg on April 9 at 20:00.
It is the first time that Arsenal have met Bayern since losing 10-2 on aggregate in the round of 16 in 2017. Muller scored in FCB’s 5-1 first-leg victory at the Allianz Stadium but watched the reverse leg from their bench. It was one of five goals Muller has scored against Arsenal.
Muller first met, scored and assisted against Arsenal when Bayern Munich won 3-1 in north London in a last-16 tie in February 2013. Now, he has set his sights on claiming a fifth win in eight meetings – following one draw and two defeats so far – and beating his friend Havertz.
“Kai Havertz, my friend, I am waiting for you,” Muller posted on X. “It’s a nice draw. Two very good teams, two very good stadiums [and] two very good cities. Yeah it will be tough but I’m always positive. See you, Gunners.”
Read more about what Muller has had to say about the Champions League draw, here.
Receive a digest of our best Arsenal content each week direct to your mailbox
