Arsenal appear to still be interested in Sporting Lisbon midfielder William Carvalho after scouts allegedly watched him shine against Germany in the under 21 European Championship last week.Â
The Portuguese midfielder has impressed at this summers Championship, often looking a level above other players on the pitch. He was particularly impressive in Portugal’s win over England. But it was the incredible 5-0 win over favourites Germany where Arsenal were reportedly monitoring Carvalho.
Carvalho’s €45million release clause will be beyond Arsenal’s reach, but Sporting Lisbon may be willing to listen to offers around the £20million mark. The 23 year old hadn’t had the best season in Portugal, which saw his asking price fall a little, but his recent performances for his country may have seen that price eek back up again.
Carvalho could be willing to rotate with Coquelin in the holding role for Arsenal and also be a cheaper alternative to the likes of Arturo Vidal and Morgan Schneiderlin, in terms of wages and transfer fee.
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The Gunners interest in Vidal appears to be genuine, as many reports are continuing to back the story despite it being ruled out as a hoax on Twitter. Schneiderlin now looks set to join Manchester United for £25million, and it is that fee plus his reported £100,000 per week wage demands, that put Wenger off.
I don’t blame him, if we are looking for a rotation option in midfield, we should go for someone like Carvalho, as he would earn around half as much and cost up to £8million less. If we want to go big, let’s go for Vidal. The Chilean is truly world class, something that cannot yet be said for Schneiderlin.
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