Judging by the intensity of the media reports to that effect, it will be a surprise if Arsenal do not sign a striker this summer. And rightly so. With Welbeck out till at least November not bringing in a striker before the transfer window closes will be a outright stupid.
And if you believe Italian journalist Emanuele Giulianelli, Arsenal are on the verge of signing a striker finally. According to the Italian, Arsenal have agreed personal terms with Higuain. The Argentine will reportedly sign a five-year contract with Arsenal which will see him earn as much as £7.6m-per-season.
Initial reports had indicated that Arsenal are in discussion with Napoli for a deal that could involve some cash plus Olivier Giroud moving to the Napoli which to be honest is very odd. With Giroud Arsenal needs at least one striker, why then get rid of Giroud while bringing in Higuain. Whatever Wenger is up to, we probably will never know but this news, if true, makes no sense to me at all.
Here is what the Italian tweet;
Higuain’s agent (his brother) has already agreed with Arsenal a wage of €9mln for 5 yrs. Bid to Napoli not officially done yet but expected
— Emanuele Giulianelli (@EmaGiulianelli) July 12, 2016
Napoli unlikely will accept the offer of 60mln + Giroud: they want all cash, 70mln + 8mln easy bonus. #Arsenal
— Emanuele Giulianelli (@EmaGiulianelli) July 12, 2016
Signing Higuain will make a lot of sense. The Argentine is surely one of the best strikers in the world but certainly not worth the price tag been quoted. Paying £42.5m plus Giroud is in effect purchasing the former Real Madrid star for over £72 million as Giroud should be worth at least £30 million. I simply can’t see Wenger paying that much for him, just four years after initially turning down the chance to sign him.
Could it be that Higuain’s agent is using Arsenal to drive up interest in his client? I personally believe the same situation played out with the Vardy debacle. Vardy and his agent took advantage of Arsenal’s interest to get a better deal for his client and with reports claiming Napoli are keen on tying Higuain to a new contract, maybe, just maybe, the agent is doing his best to get a bigger deal for himself and his client?
The Wenger I know certainly won’t be paying £72 million for a player who will soon clock 29.
