Kevin Phillips has urged Tottenham to beat Arsenal for the signing of Houssem Aouar, with the Frenchman is available for just £17 million.
Arsenal and Tottenham are on course to conducting more transfer business before the window closes. Both clubs are searching for players that could fit several positions as Mikel Arteta and Nuno Espirito Santo work the rebuilds of their respective North London clubs.
However, sometimes rivals meet in the window after tumbling upon the same player, and usually, it leads to a bidding war. However, in this case, either club is yet to make an offer for this said target. However, the player is available for a somewhat bargain price compared to his tag a year ago.
?️ Houssem Aouar has registered as many assists in his last two #UCL seasons (7 in 15 apps) as he has in his last two Ligue 1 seasons (7 in 55 apps)
?️ Arsenal and Tottenham are reportedly in competition for the Frenchman's signature pic.twitter.com/DZqRZvpnlF
— WhoScored.com (@WhoScored) July 16, 2021
The player is Houssem Aouar. The Lyon midfielder was subject to heavy interest from Arsenal, but a deal could not be struck due to the French club’s high asking price. However, a year has gone by, and Ligue 1 clubs struggling financially due to a failed TV rights deal has led clubs to sell their assets to generate cash and keep their businesses afloat.
Aouar has two years left on his current deal at Lyon, but the club is ready to sell him for a significantly lower price than last year. While they were reportedly asking £30 or £40 million, depending on who was reporting, the French club are ready to accept offers of around £17 million this summer.
Tottenham have reportedly considered Aouar for this season, but the early heavy interest was again from Arsenal, who at one point were ready to make an offer. With Arteta not considering Aouar as his primary target, the Spanish manager would still like him as an alternative.
Overall, the Gunners’ slow interest has left the transfer trail cold for now, and one former Premier League player has urged Spurs to take due advantage of the situation. Kevin Phillips has urged Tottenham to beat Arsenal to the Aouar signing, especially given his price tag.
Phillips was talking to Football Insider about transfers and happened to come across the Aouar topic. He told Tottenham specifically,
“Just go and do it” if Aouar is really available for just £17 million. “Any player you try to sign from France, you have that benefit of being a Premier League club,”
“If you can get him for that kind of money, just go and do it. It’s as simple as that. “If you have the chance to get one over on Arsenal, then it’s a good bit of business. I can see it.
“Nuno knows what he’s doing, and that’s important. He will know how he wants his Tottenham team to play. “If he can get those signings in, then you will see a different style of play at the start of the season.”
That certainly is an interesting piece of advice. Tottenham have been busy with transfer dealings. The club has signed Italian goalkeeper Pierluigi Gollini from Atalanta and confirmed Bryan Gil’s capture from Sevilla. Santo’s side are also chasing Atalanta’s Cristian Romero, and after those players a signed. Aouar could be next in line.
Arsenal, meanwhile, are waiting on the developments over some of their central midfield and attacking targets. James Maddison remains a target alongside Martin Odegaard. However, If the side fails to get either of those players, Arteta might go for the Lyon star.
