Mario Mandzukic has gone down in the pecking order at Atletico Madrid after the arrival of Fernando Torres and Arsenal look ready to offer the striker a way out by making a A?26m bid on transfer D day. Manchester City are also planning a last-gasp offer for Mario Mandzukic.
Mario Mandzukic moved to Atletico Madrid in summer from Bayern Munich in a deal worth 20 million euros. But the striker has failed to fully convince Diego Simeone about his abilities and the coach was forced to look elsewhere to add some more depth into his squad.
Atletico Madrid signed Fernando Torres from AC Milan early this month on a six month loan, with an option to make his signing permanent in summer. The former Chelsea man has made an excellent start to his career at Vicente Calderon and has now replaced Mario Mandzukic as the number one striker of Atletico Madrid.
Arsenal are highly dependent on the duo of Olivier Giroud and Alexis Sanchez this season. The Gunners are struggling badly to keep up the pace with the likes of Manchester United and Southampton for all important Champions League spot and the club authorities believe that Mario Mandzukic could be lured away from Atletico Madrid on the last day of transfer window.
Meanwhile, reports coming from England and Spain have also disclosed the plans of Arsenal to make a last-gasp move for Mario Mandzukic.
Daily Express has claimed in its report that the Croatian striker moved to Spain from Bayern Munich over the summer but the arrival – and return to form – of former Chelsea man Fernando Torres has seen the striker fall down the pecking order at the Vicente Calderon Stadium. And the 28-year-old could now be offloaded in the coming days with Manchester City and Arsenal both interested.
Manchester City, who just splashed 37 millions on Wilfried Bony, are also interested in Mario Mandzukic. It is believed that the days of Stevan Jovetic are numbered at Manchester City as host of Serie A clubs are ready to take him back to Italy.
However, in spite of this ongoing interest of Manchester City and Arsenal, Atletico Madrid are not likely to grant the sale of Mario Mandzukic in the middle of the season as their title hopes of both, La Liga and Champions League, are very much alive.