Arsenal are reportedly willing to shell out €30 million to secure the services of Arda Turan from Barcelona in the summer.
Spanish publication Don Balon have reported that Arda Turan is inching closer to his exit from Camp Nou in the summer transfer window, with Barcelona and Arsenal set to negotiate a deal worth €30 million for the Turkish midfielder.
Turan arrived at Barcelona with a burgeoning reputation of being one of the most menacing attacking midfielders in Spain during his four-year spell at Atletico Madrid. Having sealed a dream switch to Camp Nou, though, his career has come to a grinding halt.
To begin with, Turan made a belated debut for Barcelona as the club’s transfer ban made him ineligible to play for them for till January 2016. And following his first appearance for the Blaugrana, the player has managed to start just 23 games in La Liga in addition to another in the Champions League.
While usurping the likes of Neymar and Lionel Messi from attack was always going to be a tall order, Turan has failed to stake a claim for a regular slot at the heart of the Barcelona midfield as well. Thus, having been unable to take his career to the next level at Camp Nou, the Turk is likely to leave the club this summer.
And the club that looks the most likely to snap him up is Arsenal, who have been the admirers of the player’s talents for a long time. The Gunners are eyeing the versatile midfielder as a reinforcement in attack amid heavy uncertainty surrounding the future of Alexis Sanchez.
Should the Chilean forward leave Arsenal in the summer transfer window, a position in the first-team setup at the Emirates will be up for grabs, thereby giving Turan the opportunity to play regular football once again.
And even though the player is 30 years old now, he can be the perfect short-term solution for Barcelona should he be able to rediscover his best touch. Meanwhile, Barcelona have placed a value of €30 million on Turan’s head, which is an amount that Arsenal are willing to fork out for his services.
Thus, the two clubs are getting closer to reaching an agreement over a deal for the former Atletico Madrid midfielder, and it remains to be seen if the move is sealed in the weeks to come.