Deportivo La Coruna have reportedly rejected Arsenal’s £16.9m bid for their forward Lucas Perez due to the structure of the deal.
Daily Mail have reported that Arsenal have suffered a setback in their pursuit of Deportivo La Coruna forward Lucas Perez after the Liga BBVA club deemed the structure of their £16.9m bid for the Spaniard as ‘unacceptable’. The report added that despite the offer matching the release clause inserted in the player’s contract, Deportivo are unhappy with Arsenal’s wish to pay the release fee in two installments.
The club wants the fee to be paid in a single lump-sum amount, which has given Everton fresh hope of trumping the Londoners for the striker. Lucas Perez had been a target for Everton’s new Director of Football, Steve Walsh during his time at Leicester and he seems to have retained his interest in bringing the forward to England.
The Toffees had reportedly proposed to pay the whole amount of the release clause, but the negotiations have not been that straight-forward with Deportivo, while Arsenal had decided to come in with an offer just as Everton were looking to push through for a quick transfer.
Lucas Perez seems to favour a move to Arsenal though, because of the higher reputation and stature of the London club along with the prospect of playing in the Champions League. Arsenal also seem to be desperate to land a striker, something that they have been on the lookout for, since the end of last season.
The 27-year-old recorded his best season in the league thus far scoring 17 goals and recording 8 assists in 36 Liga BBVA appearances. The Deportivo La Coruna man seemed to have picked up where he left off last season, as he opened the 2016-17 season with a goal and an assist in a 2-1 win over Eibar (stats via whoscored).
Arsenal and Everton also face competition from Valencia, who had earlier submitted an enquiry for the striker in order to replace Paco Alcacer, who was rumoured to be on the move to Barcelona. The rumours have since gained pace, which may result in Valencia going on the offensive to land the Deportivo La Coruna striker to cover for the contingency of their star forward leaving for the league champions.
As reported, Lucas Perez does prefer Arsenal over Everton but if Valencia do decide to table a real offer, the 27-year-old might be forced to think. A move to Arsenal would result in a change of league, while Valencia would offer playing time at a higher stature compared to Deportivo, also remaining in the league where the forward has developed a comfort zone.
Arsenal’s search for a striker could end if the club accept Deportivo’s demand of paying the transfer fee in a single installment while a failure to accept their demand likely to cause the negotiations to break down. Arsenal fans would be sure to make the hierarchy aware of their displeasure if they were to fail in their pursuit of yet another forward.
