HERE WE GO: Arsenal finally completes dream transfer signing as the star arrives in London for medical- Announcement holds tomorrow
Arsenal reportedly asked a Bundesliga star to ‘wait’ for them, but he is now ‘on the verge’ of making a move to a side who have come out of nowhere for him.
The Gunners have been playing a game of cat and mouse with Leroy Sane of late. For months, he has been heavily linked with a move to the Emirates, but his desire for the future has not been obvious, with suggestions both that he could stay at Bayern Munich and that he could leave at different points.
Bayern’s desire to keep him has been clear, as has their standpoint that they won’t pay over the odds for his next contract.
But transfer insider Florian Plettenberg has now revealed that Bayern did make a final contract offer worth around €15million (£12.7m) in total, but it was rejected.
Indeed, Sane rejected ‘all other approaches’ – including Arsenal‘s request for him to ‘wait’ – and informed Bayern of his ‘decision to leave the club’.
The insider has revealed that Sane is now ‘on the verge’ of joining Turkish side Galatasaray. He states they have ‘invested the most’ in the Bayern winger over the past few weeks.
He also says the agreement to join follows ‘phone calls, meetings and the written offer’. Arsenal’s failure to land Sane will sting, after it was reported Mikel Arteta had spoken to him directly, and that he wanted to join.
But, it was also stated that he wanted more money from them, as Bayern, Galatasaray and Fenerbahce were all willing to pay more.
Arsenal were thought the be the most likely destination, provided they increased their offer.
That might suggest that they in fact did not increase their offer, allowing Galatasaray to land Sane despite having not invested as much time over as long a period as the Gunners have.
In any case, if the north Londoners still want to recruit a winger, they will have to look elsewhere. Whether another of their targets, Nico Williams, is still available for much longer remains to be seen.
Indeed, there has been talk of him renewing his contract with Athletic Club, while Bayern are believed to be interested as a Sane replacement, and Barcelona have long been linked with him.
