Arsenal are inching closer to completing a deal for Sheffield United goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale, with the Blades lowering their asking-price considerably.
The Athletic have reported that talks are very much back underway between the Gunners and United. It comes after discussions reached an impasse last week, and Arsenal apparently walked away.
But it seems that the deal is very much back on now. The Express report that United have taken around £11m off their original asking-price of £35m for Ramsdale. The club are now inclined to accept closer to £24m, with potential add-ons thrown in.
Should United agree to sanction the move, it would represent a quick profit and turnaround on a player we paid £18m for last summer. Ramsdale is thought to be keen on the move, too.
Blades fans will be hoping any funds raised can be ploughed back into the first-team. Slavisa Jokanovic has had a slow start to life as Blades boss – both on and off the pitch – and takes his team to West Brom tomorrow.
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Our View: Ramsdale to Arsenal always likely, time to reinvest
The ‘will-he, won’t-he’ situation surrounding Ramsdale has dominated our transfer talks all summer. Arsenal have messed around a bit, and seem to scrimping and saving every last penny.
Ultimately, though, United need some money to refresh this squad. And unfortunately, selling the goalkeeper is probably the smartest move.
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If the £24m fee is right, then even reinvesting half of that can vastly improve this squad. The big call, obviously, is whether Wes Foderingham or Michael Verrips can step up to the plate, or we need a replacement.
Regardless, money needs to go back into the squad and first XI. It’s looking more likely we’ll keep Sander Berge, which is a bonus. But we need creativity and attacking prowess adding.
£24m is ample money to do some sort of rebuild. And who knows, we might even be able to shift a few fringe players on too.