Arsenal hold talks to sign £21m star who prefers Gunners over Man United

Arsenal have been in negotiations over signing an “exciting” player who reportedly prefers them to Premier League rivals Man United, and he also once agreed to join the Gunners before a move ultimately fell through.

Arsenal lay groundwork for summer transfers after disappointing 2024/2025

Manager Mikel Arteta and new sporting director Andrea Berta are looking ahead to the transfer window next month, which opens from June 1 to June 10 and then reopens from June 16 to September 1.

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The Gunners and Arne Slot’s side are contenders for his signature alongside France’s champions.

Many players are set to depart the Emirates Stadium, with Kieran Tierney agreeing a pre-contract with Celtic in the January window ahead of re-signing for them in July and Jorginho most recently shaking hands on a move to Flamengo in Brazil.

While Arsenal are currently in talks to extend Thomas Partey’s deal, as his contract is due to expire on June 30, there is no guarantee the Ghanaian agrees to fresh terms, and he may even have to take a pay-cut to remain in north London (ESPN).

Nuno Tavares, Fabio Vieira, Albert Lokonga and Oleksandr Zinchenko could also leave Arsenal, while uncertainty surrounds the long-term future of Leandro Trossard as the Belgium international’s contract is due to expire next year (BBC).

Taking all of this into account, Berta could orchestrate a serious summer overhaul during his debut window at the club, with a new second-choice goalkeeper also on their agenda considering Neto will return to Bournemouth after his loan spell.

A top target for Arsenal in that respect remains Espanyol shot-stopper Joan Garcia.

The Spaniard agreed personal terms over a move to N5 last summer, as per reliable media sources like Fabrizio Romano, but a transfer didn’t materialise. Garcia instead remained at his current club, and he’s enjoyed another impressive campaign between the sticks.

However, a move for Garcia is viewed by many as a very likely outcome, with previous reports from Spain indicating that Arsenal are still in contention to sign Garcia who prefers joining them over Ruben Amorim’s United (Sport).

Arsenal hold talks over signing Espanyol goalkeeper Joan Garcia

According to BBC journalist Sami Mokbel, a development has occurred in their pursuit of the 23-year-old.

It is now believed that Arsenal have held talks over signing Garcia, who appears more and more likely to be David Raya’s understudy for next season.

Mokbel doesn’t give any further information about how these discussions went, or what it would take to lure the keeper to England, but he’s known to have an affordable release clause.

Garcia could leave Espanyol for as little as £21 million, but his clause could rise to around £25 million if Arsenal leave it late. £25m will reportedly be the cost of his clause during the final 15 days of the summer window (Sport), so it’s a deal Berta will want to get done fairly early if he wishes to avoid a needless extra outlay.

The young keeper is gaining a fearsome reputation abroad as Spain’s most promising player in that position, and Football Anaylst Ben Mattinson recently lavished praise on the Espanyol starlet.

“An uber-athletic keeper with dominant cross claiming, composure on the ball, standing at 6’3” tall, García is an exciting keeper ready for a step-up,” said Mattinson on X.

“García is a keeper who excels at claiming crosses as he shows real bravery to protect his area. There’s a sense of ownership of the box where he confidently collects the ball. 16.1% of crosses stopped puts him in the top 1% of GK’s.”