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Arsenal leading chase to sign £35m international winger

By on June 12, 2017

According to a report in the Express, Arsenal are leading the chase to sign winger Yacine Brahimi but are so far reluctant to pay Porto’s £35m asking price.

Brahimi has been linked with a move to the Emirates in the past but it looks as though Arsene Wenger has renewed his interest as he aims to rebuild his squad after missing out on the top four last season.

The Express are citing a report from Portuguese newspaper Correio da Manha that claims Arsenal are leading the chase to sign the Algerian international this summer.

However, the newspaper says that while Brahimi is keen to secure a move, the proposed deal is stalling as Arsenal are refusing to pay Porto’s £35m asking price.

The Express say that Porto are demanding the entire fee up front as they need to raise a significant amount of money in order to meet UEFA Financial Fair Play guidelines for next season.

Brahimi’s representatives, Stellar Group, own 50% of his rights and this is stated as the reason Porto are demanding big money for the 27-year-old winger.

It remains to be seen whether Wenger will blink first and agree to meet Porto’s asking price but I think the Gunners boss will stand firm as Brahimi has just two years left on his contract and Porto should be desperate to sell.

If they hold out for £35m and nobody bites, then they’ll be stuck wit a player who will see his value drop dramatically next summer as he’ll have just 12 months on his deal and they also run the risk of being punished by UEFA if they fall foul of the Fair Play guidelines.

The Algerian is an exciting talent and he’d be a decent signing, however, my worry is that Wenger may be viewing Brahimi as a potential replacement for Alexis Sanchez.

READ: Arsenal in talks for £60m striker

He’s predominantly a left winger so he would occupy the position Alexis has played for the majority of time he’s been at Arsenal and I’d be devastated if the Chilean is heading for the exit door.

As we all know, Alexis is in the final year of his contract and speculation suggests he’s decided to leave so this could explain these links to Brahimi.