DONE DEAL: Arsenal beat Chelsea and Man United to the signing of Europe’s most wanted striker who has scored 27-goals this season so far- Medical will be done today and the announcement scheduled to hold on Monday
Arsenal may feel they need to rush a £51million move for reported target Ousmane Diomande to prevent Chelsea from beating them to the Sporting CP star’s signature.
The Gunners have been linked with defensive reinforcements this month and could be without William Saliba for an extended period.
Mikel Arteta admitted that he was “very worried” about Saliba after the Frenchman missed Saturday’s 2-2 draw with Aston Villa. Arsenal are waiting to learn the full extent of his hamstring problem.
The north Londoners had been linked with new defenders even before Saliba’s injury. “[Sunday] we will have more information. Tomorrow we will have another test on him and it will be more clear,” Arteta said.
“For sure [I’m worried]. Especially with the numbers that we have in the squad and looking at our bench. Very worried.”
Sporting star Diomande is a widely reported target for Arteta.
However, the Ivorian also has interest from Chelsea and, according to CaughtOffside, he prefers a move to London – leaving Arsenal battling the Blues to complete a deal. Diomande has emerged as one of Europe’s best young defenders and shone under now-Manchester United boss Ruben Amorim in Portugal.
Saliba and Gabriel have excelled as Arsenal’s centre-back partnership but both players have missed large parts of the season through injury. Arteta lacks depth and will be tempted by a move for Diomande, who would initially add depth before competing for a regular starting role.
Arsenal may need to rush through a deal this month, though, with Chelsea hot on their heels. The Blues have also struggled for quality at centre-back, where Levi Colwill needs a regular long-term partner. Diomande would be an excellent addition and fit within Chelsea’s criteria of signing young players with promise.
Completing the signing of Diomande this month would give Arsenal the added bonus of the player learning under Arteta for six months before being thrust into more regular involvement before next term. The Gunners will be expected to mount a better Premier League title challenge in 2025-26.
Beating Chelsea to a deal for Diomande would be imperative as Arsenal will seek to prevent their rivals from mopping up the best young talent in Europe. Diomande could also be Saliba’s partner for the next decade.
Signing Diomande now rather than waiting until the summer – when more clubs enter the race to acquire the 21-year-old – would be Arsenal’s best route to landing their top centre-back target.
