Arsenal are eager to sign Noni Madueke this summer, a player who has toured around London in his career.
Personal terms aren’t an issue for Madueke, who has already agreed such with Arsenal over a five year contract.
The player is currently under contract at Chelsea until 2030, and the Blues have made it clear that he won’t be going for cheap.
Chelsea want £55m for Madueke and Arsenal want a discounted price, hoping to talk their rivals down to agreeing a deal closer to the £45m mark.
Though the two London clubs have different valuations of the 23-year-old, both will be glad to know that one unfortunate scenario has been swerved.
- READ MORE: Gary Lineker says he’s seen a transfer rumour coming out of Arsenal that is ‘quite interesting’
Arsenal and Chelsea avoid having to pay Tottenham for Noni Madueke transfer
Born in London, Madueke has represented three clubs from the city over his career, a figure that could rise to four.
At academy level, the winger played for Crystal Palace and Tottenham before venturing to the Netherlands to develop at PSV Eindhoven.
Ahead of a possible transfer from Chelsea to Arsenal, the question has been pondered as to whether the Gunners could hand Spurs, their biggest rivals, a cash injection from the purchase.
To get the lowdown on the situation, we sought the insight of Arsenal Insider’s finance expert, Adam Williams.
“Under FIFA’s rules, clubs that developed a player – which the governing body defines as those who trained the player between the ages of 12-23 – are entitled to a five per cent cut of any transfer fee another club pays for him, which they share between them based on how long he was there.
“However, these rules only apply if the player leaves the club in the season on or before his 23rd birthday. Madueke turned 23 in March, so it’s too late for Palace, Spurs or PSV to get compensation for him.”
Arsenal will not pay any percentage of Madueke’s transfer to their North London rivals, nor Palace, nor PSV.
To further explain the scenario, Williams then dived into how things could’ve looked had Madueke’s transfer happened before the official end of the 2024/25 season.
“But for argument’s sake, if he had moved on 30 June – which is when the season-end is for FIFA – then Spurs would have been due £375,000. That’s 0.25 per cent of the fee, multiplied by the three seasons he was on the books at Spurs.”
Williams suspected that Chelsea played tactically with Madueke’s future, something Arsenal could’ve played a part in to avoid having to make ‘solidarity payments’.
“From Chelsea’s perspective, I’m sure they were always going to have held out until after 1 July to avoid giving out £2.5m in solidarity payments. They probably had a gentleman’s agreement with Arsenal here.”
Chelsea and Arsenal might have exchanged pleasantries over Madueke’s future, but can relationships be maintained when it comes to the player’s sale fee?
Noni Madueke’s market value compared to Chelsea’s asking price
With a lot of work to be done to bolster the front line, Arsenal won’t want to overspend on a player who is not guaranteed to be a starter.
Therefore, Chelsea’s £55m asking price for Madueke seems rather exorbitant.
That being said, there’s thought behind the Blues’ demands having seen Anthony Elanga’s £55m move to Newcastle United go through.
Arsenal are working in a resoundingly inflated market, as seen through the difference between Madueke’s market value and Chelsea’s asking price.
Based on his contract, form and age, Transfermarkt value Madueke at £34m, £21m below the Blues’ expectations.
It will be fascinating to see how Arsenal opt to approach negotiations with such a high purchase price quoted.
Receive a digest of our best Arsenal content each week direct to your mailbox
