A journalist has revealed Leicester ace Youri Tielemans ‘wants’ to join Arsenal next, while also revealing how long the potential switch would take to go through.
Tielemans is now in the final 12 months of his Leicester deal and the Foxes are coming to the realisation that he will move on. They have previously demanded in excess of £50million for the Belgian. But as he could become a free agent in 2023, it will not cost interested clubs an extortionate fee to land him this summer.
Reports claim Tielemans could leave the King Power for just £25m – half his previous price tag.
His exit would be a major blow for Brendan Rodgers and Leicester. The 25-year-old has been one of their most reliable performers since joining from Monaco, originally on loan, in January 2019.
However, letting him go before next season would be better than losing him on a free transfer at the end of the campaign.
Many clubs hold an interest in Tielemans due to his great displays in the Premier League and in European competitions. Arsenal and Manchester United are two of his top suitors.
Both sides seem to require midfield reinforcements and Tielemans would be an impressive signing to solve this issue.
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta recently hinted more new players could arrive at the Emirates after Oleksandr Zinchenko, who is set to join from Manchester City.
Youri Tielemans ‘wants Arsenal’
And Tielemans could be the next to sign. CBS Sports reporter Ben Jacobs, who is an expert on Leicester and Tielemans’ situation, has given an update on Arsenal’s transfer pursuit.
He said (via HITC): “With Tielemans the situation is the same. The player wants Arsenal and if Arsenal made a bid the deal will be done relatively quickly.
“But as of yet, Arsenal haven’t moved onto Tielemans. We all know that Zinchenko was the priority and that deal is now done.
“Tielemans has a big decision to make. He doesn’t want to stay at Leicester, that is my understanding of the situation. And he’ll have further talks reiterating that this week.”
Arsenal are being given plenty of encouragement to start talks with Leicester. Tielemans does not want to remain with the East Midlands side, and Jacobs believes a transfer will go through ‘quickly’ once the Gunners make a bid.
Arteta and Edu just need to decide how much their opening offer will be worth. They do not want to insult Leicester by coming in too low, which could allow United to win the race.
Due to this, they should match Leicester’s £25m price tag straight away, or at least come very close to it.
They can save a bit of money by putting £20m up initially and then offering the rest in potential add-ons. This would keep Leicester involved in the discussions and an agreement will likely be reached soon afterwards.
Meanwhile, Arteta says Arsenal are going to start offloading players who have no future at the club.