Arsenal have opened talks with Stoke City for the £8million signing of Asmir Begovic according to the Metro.
Stoke have a long-term replacement already at the club in Jack Butland, which makes this deal realistic and the price is unlikely to be too high. Whilst Szczesny has been impressive, Arsenal seem keen to add a quality second choice keeper after chasing one last summer. The Metro say in their report that Arsenal will talk to Stoke over the coming days with the hope of securing an £8million deal for the Bosnian keeper.
Arsenal need at least one new keeper this summer with Fabianski and Viviano leaving the club. I’ve said it before that Marshall would be my favourite signing for this position. He is a quality keeper and he and Szczesny were probably the best keepers in the league last season. Similarly to Begovic however, I don’t see him wanting to play second fiddle to Szczesny and this could be a sticking point. It’d be hard for him to turn down Arsenal though, surely?
Begovic may have the same problem in turning down Arsenal. He will want to further his career into Champions League Football and signing for Arsenal would give him more of an oppurtunity to do so. The thing is, should Arsenal really be spending £8million of their budget on Begovic? If Szczesny were to get a long-term injury a strong second choice would be brilliant, but it is a luxury. Someone like Kasper Schmeichel, Jussi Jaaskelinan or Mark Schawarzer for free could be more financially sensible.
Would you like to see £8million spent on Begovic? Comment below.
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Photo via Ronnie Macdonald