Arsenal were 'making progress' over £40m star at the Emirates | OneFootball

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·21 June 2022

Arsenal were 'making progress' over £40m star at the Emirates

Article image:Arsenal were 'making progress' over £40m star at the Emirates

Arsenal were “making progress” in their bid to land Leicester City midfielder Youri Tielemans last week, claims transfer insider Dean Jones.

There has been some talk about the north London club cooling their interest in the Belgian, but Jones thinks he is still a target for them after a round of negotiations only days ago.


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Article image:Arsenal were 'making progress' over £40m star at the Emirates

What is the latest news involving Tielemans?

According to GOAL, Arsenal are ready to take a step back in their pursuit of Tielemans.

Prior, however, transfer expert Fabrizio Romano had claimed that Arsenal were working on a deal, while The Telegraph reported that Mikel Arteta was pushing the north London club to make a £25m offer for the 25-year-old.

It would, therefore, be a surprise if Arsenal really have cooled their interest in Tielemans, who joined Leicester from AS Monaco for £40m three years ago.

The Gunners, though, have signed midfielder Fabio Vieira from Porto in a £34m deal, which is a possible explanation for why they would end their pursuit of the Belgium international.

What has Jones said about Tielemans to Arsenal?

Jones still thinks Tielemans is a target for Arsenal and has told GIVEMESPORT that the club were in negotiations to acquire the player last week.

Speaking to GMS, the journalist said: “I would imagine he is [still a target] because I know they were still making progress on that deal last week. I’m not saying it’s close, but there was still negotiating going on.

“Obviously, clubs do pursue more than one player at one time, so it’s not impossible that they now give up on Tielemans, but he was definitely a player they were very keen on.”

Should Arsenal still try and sign Tielemans?

Tielemans represents a very good opportunity in this transfer market. The former Monaco man is a very talented midfielder with just one year to run on his contract, so he is not going to cost what he is actually worth.

Over the past year, Tielemans has ranked in the 89th percentile for expected assists, the 85th for shot-creating actions and the 88th for progressive passes among his positional peers (via FBref), so he is a player who would improve Arsenal going forward.

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Article image:Arsenal were 'making progress' over £40m star at the Emirates

Which year did Dennis Bergkamp leave Arsenal?

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Speaking about Tielemans recently, Belgium manager Roberto Martinez said: “He is still very young, but actually plays like a captain.

“Tactically he sees the game, he is intelligent and always found the space. In addition, he keeps the balance and provides that little bit extra.”

If Arsenal really do decide to pull out of a deal for Tielemans, it is easily a decision that they could live to regret.

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