For some reason, stories about Samuel Umtiti and Arsenal are being entertained quite seriously by the media.
The French centre-back, who recently scored for France on international duty, is the subject of interest from the Gunners, who have allegedly even gone as far as making a loan with a view to buy offer.
TuttoMercatoWeb state Arsenal have put €5m on the table now with a right to purchase the player permanently at a later date for €40m.
Barcelona, having received said offer, would prefer any deal to have a compulsory option to buy, allowing then to move onto Matthijs De Ligt to replace him.
Arsenal are said to be in ‘pole position’ in the race for the France international and could soon be joined by AS Roma in case Kostas Manolas is sold in the summer.
Their main issue will be the player’s salary, and their likely lack of Champions League football next season certainly doesn’t play in their favour, either.
This could also apply to Arsenal, as missing out on the elite European competition would lead to one important question: why would Umtiti leave Barcelona for the Emirates?
He might not have played in the last two games, but he’s also just come back from injury and started both games for France during the international break.
