Former Barcelona superstar Dani Alves favours a move to Arsenal this summer and is willing to take a pay cut after seeing out his contract at Paris Saint-Germain.
According to The Sun, Arsenal have emerged as the desired destination for Dani Alves. The Brazilian international has become one of the hottest subjects in the ongoing summer transfer window, after leaving Paris Saint-Germain this summer.
Alves confirmed that he is keen on playing in the Premier League and Arsenal are now believed to be his preferred destination. The defender is even willing to take a pay cut to reunite with Unai Emery next season. The veteran worked with the Spaniard at PSG. Emery, too, is eager to sign him up this summer and has reportedly asked the Arsenal hierarchy to make a move for the right-back this summer.
However, there is an issue. Even though Alves is willing to settle for a pay cut, the report claims that he still doesn’t want to earn less than £200,000-a-week. And that could become a problem for a skint Arsenal side, who have freed as much as £410,000-a-week worth of salary by getting rid of Stephan Lichsteiner, Danny Welbeck, David Ospina, Petr Cech and Aaron Ramsey.
The departure of Lichsteiner, however, has left a huge void in the right-back department. Carl Jenkinson has struggled to find a prominent role under Emery, meaning Hector Bellerin remains the only natural option for the club in the said position, but Ainsley Maitland-Niles did impress in the role last season.
Alves, in that regard, could add more depth into the side while his vast experience at the highest level football would instill more stability into the Arsenal backline that has looked susceptible for the past two-three seasons. Furthermore, the ex-Barcelona star is one of the most successful defenders in world football and this winning mentality could just add the spark the Gunners were looking for.
That being said, they simply cannot afford to once again disrupt their wage structure by handing £200,000-a-week to Alves next season. The North London giants are already keen on offloading a £350,000-a-week Mesut Ozil, whose presence in the squad has heavily restricted them to make any big-money moves this summer. Alves, therefore, is not a viable option for Arsenal from a financial perspective.
Therefore, the Gunners should shift their attention towards a younger alternative, who will be willing to play second fiddle to Bellerin next season while also have room to improve. Besides, Emery could rely on Maitland-Niles to become more familiarised with the right wing-back role.
