VfB Stuttgart’s director of football, Sven Mislintat, has revealed they can sign Arsenal defender Konstantinos Mavropanos for as little as €3m next summer.
The Greek defender is currently on loan with the Bundesliga side for a second straight year, having also joined up with them last season.
The deal for this season includes a purchase obligation written into it, with reports varying on the fee Arsenal will receive.
While in Germany they have insisted the price is as low as €3m, there have been arguments against that in England, where it’s stated the German side will have to pay as much as €7m.
That’s a considerable difference for a smaller club like Stuttgart, whose finances have to be carefully managed, particularly given they only return to the Bundesliga this season.
But according to Mislintat, the fee is definitely €3m, although that could change based on how their first season back in the top flight plays out.
“We have a purchase obligation of three million euros if we stay in the league and a free purchase option if we don’t reach our class target,” he told Sky, relayed by Fussballeck.
“In both cases, we would have the chance to take him. It’s relatively clear what will happen with him.”
Now, we’re not entirely sure what Mislintat means by the ‘free purchase option’ he mentions in his comments.
We’re reading it as free of will, in other words, Stuttgart will be obligated to pay €3m if the avoid relegation but if they don’t reach their target then that obligation disappears and it is simply an option they can take up.
That would make more sense than Mavropanos being available on a free, although given some of the deals Arsenal have negotiated in recent years, we wouldn’t be surprised if that was the case.
