Fiorentina are in pole position to sign Lucas Torreira permanently in the summer from Arsenal after the Uruguayan’s impressive loan spell in Italy.
According to the Evening Standard, Fiorentina are leading the race to sign Arsenal midfielder Lucas Torreira permanently in the summer. The Gunners are willing to take a significant loss on the Uruguayan by letting him leave for nearly half the price they paid for him back in 2018.
After being signed from Sampdoria, Lucas Torreira quickly became a fan favourite at the Emirates and provided reliability in midfield. The Uruguayan further endeared himself to the Arsenal faithful after scoring in the North London Derby and also helped the club reach the Europa League Final.
However, his form dropped off in his second season, and he completely fell out of favour after Mikel Arteta arrived. The Spanish manager used him sporadically as an option to see out games in his first six months at the club. The Uruguayan eventually left Arsenal on loan in 2020 but endured a difficult period at Atletico Madrid.
After his return to the Emirates last year, no clubs were prepared to pay Arsenal’s asking price for Torreira, but Fiorentina signed him on loan for the 2021/22 season, which marked his return to Italy.
The diminutive midfielder has found his rhythm again with Fiorentina and has proven to be one of their top performers. He has massively helped the Italian side mount a challenge to finish in the top four, although that has somewhat derailed in recent weeks.
Fiorentina have a buy option worth £12.5 million in their current agreement with Arsenal. The north London side reportedly offered the midfielder in a deal to secure Dusan Vlahovic in January, but the Gunners were unsuccessful in their pursuit after the Serb joined Juventus. However, there remains an opportunity for them to get a decent fee from Torreira’s sale if the Serie A outfit exercise their buy option.
If the sale goes through for the aforementioned fee, the Gunners would be taking a significant loss on the midfielder, for whom they paid nearly £25 million back in 2018. In light of some recent links with new midfield targets, it is safe to assume Torreira is unlikely to have a future at the Emirates.
As for the move to Fiorentina, it would be a good chance for Torreira to settle down and continue rebuilding his career after a lean spell at Arsenal.
