Carl Jenkinson is a target for Championship side West Bromwich Albion as they eye the out-of-favour Arsenal defender for a move this summer.
Arsenal have overseen plenty of departures already since the end of the 2018-19 season. Many experienced stars and youngsters alike have left the club, and the list is only set to grow. According to Sky Sports, West Bromwich Albion are keen on Arsenal’s out-of-favour defender Carl Jenkinson, with the right-back weighing his options this summer.
Jenkinson’s name has somehow become synonymous with Arsenal’s long-serving players. In fact, he is one of the players who has survived many overhauls and clear-outs in the recent past. Yet, the defender only managed nine appearances under Unai Emery.
The fact that is an out-of-favour defender means it might finally be time to leave Arsenal in the summer. West Bromwich Albion are interested in the defender and want to sign him this summer. The Baggies finished fourth in the Championship and failed to negotiate a path back into the Premier League after losing their playoffs semi-final to Aston Villa.
Hence they are set to endure another season in the English second tier and want some experienced players to fuel their bid for a return next season. As much as Arsenal are willing to sell Jenkinson, there are some confusing factors attached with the right-back’s deal with the Gunners.
For instance, Jenkinson’s existing contract ends at the end of the month, yet Arsenal have not listed him among those departed. The Gunners released a list earlier this month which detailed the players who were released or departed the club and Jenkinson wasn’t part of that. It could mean Arsenal have negotiated an extension, probably for another year with the player behind the scenes.
In that case, West Brom would have to pay a transfer fee, although it is expected to be quite nominal. In the end, much depends on Jenkinson’s wish to play regularly, which would determing whether he would sign with West Brom. Celtic have also shown an interest in the player as they look to replace the departed Mikael Lustig, Jeremy Toljan and Cristian Gamboa.
Arsenal have already seen second choice right-back Stephan Lichtsteiner leave the club earlier this month and with Hector Bellerin set to miss the start of the season due to his long-term injury, there are reinforcements needed.
PSG’s Thomas Meunier was linked earlier, but the links have since gone cold. There are no viable targets for the right-back slot as of now as Ainsley Maitland-Niles remains the only player to take up that position. Back to Jenkinson, he has never been viewed as a starter under Emery and could only manage some games last season due to an injury crisis Arsenal faced.
As for signing with West Brom, it could provide Jenkinson with regular football at the Hawthorns, where will be reunited with Slaven Bilic, and a chance to help the Baggies back into the Premier League. This transfer could very well be wrapped soon, and in the coming days, we could have more updates on the same, although Celtic’s looming interest makes things interesting.
