Arsene must know Jagielka is worth more than £10m
56 comments July 21st, 2011
There are signs of life emanating from Arsenal’s transfer department. Since the signing of Gervinho, we’ve been ominously quiet, with the only the ill-fated bid for Costa Rican starlet Joel Campbell to keep us twits twittering.
Now, however, it seems we’re back on the market, with both the BBC and Sky reporting we’ve had a £10m bid for Phil Jagielka rejected.
Apparently Everton are mildly irritated that after having a £12m bid rejected last summer, we’ve returned with a smaller offer this time round. After our recent dealings with Barcelona, it’s hard not to sympathise with their frustrations.
I hope it’s merely an opening gambit in a more prolonged period of negotiation, because Jagielka would be fantastic signing. At 28 he is just arriving at his peak as a central defender, and that’s reflected in the fact that last season he emerged as first-choice for England.
Now, being an England international does bring with it a certain premium when it comes to price. But even without that, Arsene must know Jagielka is worth more than the £10m we’ve proposed. Everton are reportedly asking for something closer to £20m – his actual value lies somewhere in the middle. What’s certain is the he’s a more accomplished, assured, experienced performer than Gary Cahill – currently valued by Bolton at £17m.
I do think that signing a player like Jagielka would potentially transform our back-line. The value of domestic experience cannot be underestimated: the rigours of the Premier League hold no fear for him. This boy can play too, and wouldn’t look at all out of place in our starting XI.
Everton are strapped for cash, and would need to sell to bring in any new players this summer. Let’s hope we make them an offer they cant refuse.
Another skint club we may look to raid is Valencia. Reports from Spain suggest their playmaker Juan Mata is regarded as a potential replacement for either Samir Nasri or Cesc Fabregas, and their manager Unai “Dick” Emery has said:
“We want him to stay and Mata has also expressed his wish to remain at Valencia, but we know that if a big-money offer comes in from any club and it’s good for both the player and the club, it could lead to his exit.”
As for Cesc himself, any reports suggesting that Barca vice-president Josep Maria Bartomeu were in the country to negotiate a deal have been proved false by the fact that Bartomeu is in fact in Barcelona negotiating another deal – the one for Chilean forward Alexis Sanchez.
Denilson has completed his loan move to Sao Paulo. I don’t know whether there’s any realistic chance of him remaining their permanently, but he’ll hope that being closer to home and playing more regularly will put him in with a chance of a call-up to the national side. I wish him all the best- you never know, he might even be back in an Arsenal shirt in twelve months time, a better player for the experience.
Despite the fact they remained at home to negotiate transfers almost a fortnight ago, there’s no news on the futures of either Nicklas Bendtner or Manuel Almunia.
Before the summer sale at Arsenal gets underway in earnest, Gunnerblog is having one of its own. All t-shirts in the Gunnerblog store will be available at discount prices until the season kicks off.
Lastly, some sad news: former Arsenal defender Ryan Garry has had to retire from football aged just 27. He was once thought of as a huge prospect, but injuries have dogged and ultimately ended his career. It looks as if his club Bouremouth will provide him with support as he embarks on a career as a coach.
