Arsenal have begun talks for what could potentially be a club record transfer.
The Gunners have done plenty of business this summer, bringing in six new faces and handing debuts to three of them in the first game of the season – Martin Zubimendi, Viktor Gyokeres and Noni Madueke – as Arsenal beat Manchester United 1-0 at Old Trafford.
There’s a consensus among fans, however, that even half a dozen signings may not be enough for a side competing across four competitions, with another last-gasp buy touted before the transfer window slams shut.
Arsenal star has asked to leave, with talks ongoing
As much as the Gunners have been active when it comes to incomings, spending almost £200 million on improving their squad, FourFourTwo understands that there may need to be exits to facilitate further buys, with no significant sale this summer in N5.
While all eyes were on the likes of Gyokeres and Zubimendi slotting into manager Mikel Arteta’s starting XI at the weekend, there were significant absences in the matchday squad of Oleksandr Zinchenko, Fabio Vieira, Reiss Nelson, Albert Sambi Lokonga, Karl Hein and Jakub Kiwior.
Now, journalist Tomasz Wlodarczyk of Kiwior’s native Poland has reported for Meczyki that the centre-back is in talks to leave the club.
“The Pole wants to leave England,” Wlodarczyk confirmed in a post on X (formerly Twitter), adding, “Porto, [who] sent an official offer in July, [are] very likely” as suitors.
While Arsenal’s record signing is still Declan Rice for over £100m, the North Londoners’ record sale sits at around a third of that, with Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain’s £33m exit to Liverpool still the biggest fee that the club have collected for one of their players.
With Kiwior highly valued by Arsenal, having proven his worth as Gabriel’s deputy towards the run-in last season, FourFourTwo understands that there’s a very real possibility that Arteta and Co. demand at least £35m – meaning the Pole could become their all-time record sale.
With both Porto and Milan interested, it’s uncertain whether Arsenal will receive an offer over £30m, however.
While both clubs are in the market for a centre-back, neither of them have the headroom to spend big, though there is hope that the Portuguese outfit have the finances to pull of a deal, having potentially collected a significant sum for competing in the Club World Cup over the summer.
Capology estimates that Kiwior is currently earning around £58,000-a-week in English football with three years remaining on his contract – so Arsenal certainly hold all the cards when it comes to his exit and surely won’t feel pressured to accept a low offer.
The 25-year-old is worth €25m, according to Transfermarkt.
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