Arsenal tried to halt loaning Joel Campbell to Sporting, claim Portuguese newspapers O Jogo and A Bola.
In their Monday editions, the outlets say the Gunners wanted to call the transfer off after they suffered a lot of criticism from their own fans for letting Campbell go.
The English club made contact after the player had completed his medical in Lisbon, but both Sporting and Campbell pushed hard, and in the end Arsenal had to kept to their word.
Record claims the transfer was delayed for a few hours because Arsenal made “last minute demands”, but it was all sorted out quickly. According to A Bola, Arsenal will pay for a “significant part of his wages”.
At his Sporting presentation, Joel Campbell explained why he was so keen on the move:
“It’s true that I talked to Bryan Ruiz, who told me good things about the club. However, the support given by the president and the manager is what influenced my decision.”
When the loan was initially reported on Saturday, it was claimed Sporting would have a €10m buying option over Campbell. However, none of the sports outlets in Portugal are mentioning an amount today.
This all makes a nice story for Sporting, and given that it’s been pushed to at least two of the major Portuguese newspapers, it may well be some form of PR exercise… whether it happened or not.
