Transfer guru Fabrizio Romano spoke on The Arsenal Lounge about Mikel Arteta and Edu’s failure to sign Lyon star Houssem Aouar in the summer.
The Gunners were heavily linked with a move for the Frenchman. We also had a couple of bids rejected by Lyon for the playmaker, and that eventually ended our pursuit. We signed Thomas Partey on transfer deadline day instead, but the need for a player like Aouar is still massive.
Why Aouar snubbed Arsenal
Romano was asked about the deal that broke down, and he claims that it is all Arsenal’s fault. He says that Aouar wanted to join us, but our delay in making a move for him changed his mind, and he decided to stay put.
He said: “With two or three weeks left in the window, if you paid €50 million, you would have signed the player for sure. Aouar wanted to leave Lyon and join Arsenal. But, in the last week of the window when Arsenal were moving to sign him, he wasn’t feeling like ready to leave.”
“He also had a proposal from Juventus. Also, someone from Paris Saint-Germain told him: ‘Next summer we are coming for you, you can wait.'”
“He was waiting for Arsenal for three or four weeks, they didn’t pay, they didn’t sign him. That’s why Aouar changed his position in the last week of the transfer window. Let’s see what happens in January. It’s not easy because you have to negotiate with (Lyon President, Jean-Michel) Aulas but also have to convince the player to change (his mind) in January.”
“Aouar knows that he can play in the Champions League in the summer, he has Champions League clubs moving for him. Arsenal lost the right moment to sign him. It was a big opportunity for three or four weeks in August. Arsenal lost it and it is so complicated now.
“But, he is on top of the list and Arsenal will try again to bring this kind of player and Aouar is the favourite.”
Can Arsenal sign Aouar in January?
Arteta, Edu and a number of Arsenal fans would love to bring Aouar to the Emirates next month, but it will not be easy. The Frenchman has a lot of admirers in world football, and our inability to offer him a chance to play in the Champions League could ruin the deal for us.
Lyon will also make it extremely difficult for us to sign him. Aulas is a tough negotiator and he will not budge on Aouar’s asking price. Arsenal spent a lot of money in the summer, and it is unclear if there are enough funds available to make a big signing next month.
Many felt that there was no chance that we could sign Partey in the summer. His release clause was reportedly beyond our reach, but we proved all the reports wrong buy sealing a deal on the final day of the window.
Can Edu and co do the same for Aouar next month? It will be a lot more difficult than it was Partey, but fans can dream, and signing a player of his quality could change our fortunes in the second half of the season.
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