Arsenal are in discussions with Eintracht Frankfurt striker Andre Silva over a move but may need to sell before signing the Portuguese.
According to the Mirror, Arsenal are interested in bringing Andre Silva this summer from Eintracht Frankfurt but may have to offload one of their stars before signing the Portuguese. The current player in question seems to be Alexandre Lacazette, who has only a year left on his 200,000-a-week deal at the Emirates.
Arsenal might not have been in the window for a striker, but if an opportunity arises, they might do business. That said, Eintracht Frankfurt’s goal machine Andre Silva is said to be available for £34 million, a price tag that may be deemed affordable for Arsenal.
Silva scored 29 goals in Bundesliga last season, finishing only behind Robert Lewandowski in the scoring charts in the German top-flight. The Portuguese had a difficult start to his career after failing at AC Milan and Sevilla. However, having worked hard to get things back on track, he is considered one of the hot prospects of the striker market this summer.
Naturally, there has been interest in him from the Spanish sides. Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid are keen on him, while Barcelona were also interested before signing Sergio Aguero. And there seems to be serious talk of Arsenal’s desire to sign the striker. The report suggests that Arsenal have held some level of discussions with Silva, informing their need to sell some of their players before signing him.
The situation at Arsenal is baffling at best when it comes to their striking options. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is still one season into his new contract, while Gabriel Martinelli and teen prospect Florian Balogun all considered for the long-term future. So that leaves Alexandre Lacazette as the fall guy.
Despite having a good season personally, Lacazette is deemed expendable owing to his contract situation. With one year left on his 200,000-a week deal, Arsenal have so far not shown any indication towards offering a new contract. Instead, the Gunners might look to cash in as they feel the time may be right. At 29 years, the French forward still holds some value.
Atletico Madrid have shown keen interest in Lacazette previously, and they are still in the hunt for a top striker despite the tremendous signing of Luis Suarez. However, the La Liga champions might come back for the Frenchman again if the price is right.
Arsenal have a huge wage bill as things stand, and if they can offload some of their high earning stars, a move for Silva could be facilitated. Players like Laccazette, Aubameyang and Willian are all above 200,000-a-week wages, and the Gunners are keen to keep the wage bill in check as they don’t have European football next season.
Andre Silva could be an excellent addition to the Arsenal side who were left high and dry for goals last season after Aubameyang failed to inspire the side. The signing of Silva could also give the Gunners a long-term solution to their striking options with their skipper already 32 and Lacazette closing in on his thirties.
