Arsenal to sign Lucas Paqueta 'on one condition'

FT Desk

Updated: 24 Aug 2022 03:20 CDT
3 min read

Lucas Paqueta, Lyon, 2021/22 — © ProShots

Arsenal could soon be back in for Lyon's Brazil midfielder Lucas Paqueta, but it is dependent on other movements in the transfer market.

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The Gunners have a long-standing interest Paqueta, who has scored 21 goals and assisted 13 more since leaving AC Milan for Lyon in September 2020.

Arsenal currently look well-stocked in the attacking midfield positions, though, with Martin Odegaard, Gabriel Martinelli and Bukayo Saka helping them to the top of the Premier League.

Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko have been signed from Manchester City for a combined £77m/€91m, meanwhile, and have slotted in quickly up front and at left-back respectively.

If Arsenal wait any longer, somebody else could swoop in for Tielemans.

And that somebody could be Man Utd, West Ham, or Newcastle 👀

The latest from @jacobsben of @cbssportsgolazo 👇 pic.twitter.com/paYkGZ3vwR
— Football Transfers (@Transfersdotcom) August 9, 2022

Although Zinchenko can also play in midfield, Kieran Tierney's ongoing injury concerns mean that Arsenal remain in the market for a midfielder. Paqueta can play deeper, but their first choice is Leicester City man Youri Tielemans.

Asking price dropped

Leicester had been holding out for €45m for their star midfielder. But with only one year left on his contract at the King Power Stadium and bids at that level not forthcoming, the club have dropped their asking price according to Belgian newspaper Het Nieuwsblad.

The Foxes are reportedly ready to settle for around half of their initial asking price, and while that might have pleased Arsenal, it has also strengthened the interest coming from competition in the shape of Manchester United and Liverpool.

United have signed Casemiro from Real Madrid for €83m but they retain an interest in Barcelona's Frenkie de Jong. If De Jong holds firm in his desire to stay at Camp Nou, Tielemans could become a viable alternative.

Liverpool's need for a central midfielder is pronounced, meanwhile. Beaten 2-1 at Old Trafford on Monday, they had to lean on 19-year-old Harvey Elliot with Thiago Alcantara, Naby Keita and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain all injured.

If either of United or Liverpool win the Tielemans chase, Paqueta could find himself an Arsenal player by the end of the transfer window.