Report: Arsenal give up on Manuel Locatelli; Arteta tells Edu to sign £21.5m star instead

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According to TuttoSport, Arsenal have accepted defeat in the race to sign Sassuolo star Manuel Locatelli this summer.

The 23-year-old Italian has been heavily linked with a move to the Emirates over the last few weeks. He is reportedly Arsenal’s priority target this summer, and Sassuolo’s CEO even confirmed that the Gunners have tabled an official offer for him. (Read here)

However, multiple reports have since claimed that Locatelli only wants to join Juventus. He has made up his mind to such an extent that he isn’t even answering Mikel Arteta and Edu’s phone calls. (Read more)

As a result, Arsenal have decided to move on. Locatelli is no longer an option for the Gunners, who are now focusing their attention on another 23-year-old midfielder.

Arsenal give up on Locatelli, Aouar is the priority now

TuttoSport claim today that Locatelli will join Juventus this summer and Arsenal are now focusing on a deal to sign Lyon star Houssem Aouar instead.

The Frenchman was our priority target last year. We tried all summer to bring him in and had a couple of bids rejected by Lyon as well. We did everything we could to get the deal over the line, but we failed, and he stayed put.

Aouar is now reportedly desperate to leave Lyon this summer. Les Gones are open to selling him as well, and if reports are to be believed, his £55 million price-tag from last year has gone down considerably.

ESPN revealed yesterday that Arsenal are keen to sign Aouar this summer and he’ll be available for just £21.5 million. That is very affordable for the Gunners in this window, and our heavy interest from last season shows that Arteta really likes him as well.

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Aouar, if we sign him, will be our new number 10, but we’ll still need a central midfielder as well. Locatelli would’ve been perfect, but that’s unlikely now, which puts the pressure on Edu to find someone of a similar quality before the window shuts at the end of August.