According to Marca, Nacho Monreal will join Real Sociedad on a two-year contract in the coming days.
The 33-year-old Spain international has been a long-term target for the Basque side who will pay Arsenal a small fee to complete the deal.
Monreal is under contract at the Emirates until next summer and the Gunners have an option to extend his tenure for another season.
Unai Emery has spoken openly about the club being willing to let more players go before the transfer window closes around Europe but his focus has been on shifting Shkodran Mustafi and Mohamed Elneny.
Allowing Monreal to leave represents something of a risky move. One of three confirmed captains, he’s an experienced, well-liked member of the squad who has played the first two games of the season at left-back and can operate as a centre-back. His exit also means that until Kieran Tierney, his long-term successor, recovers from injury we’ll be relying on Sead Kolasinac.
Signed from Malaga in January 2013 for around £9 million he’s been one of the most underrated signings of the Wenger era. We’ll be sad to see him go.
All eyes will be on the travelling squad for this evening’s game at Anfield.
Would make no sense for me- significantly better both defensively and offensively than Kolasinac and the fee will be almost negligible given age and contract situation. He’s one I’d actually rather just see us run the contract down and let him go for free.
I totally agree with you mjc
Agree in principle, but I guess the thinking behind this is that both aren’t good enough to be the kind of full back Unai wants (Nacho due to his age and Kola due to his defending and passing) and we can still get a fee for Kola next year as for Nacho this is the last chance to get a few pounds in. But nevertheless I will be sad to see him going too. Top professional and a really good guy.
It also leaves us dangerously light for at least a month until KT returns. The amount of points we could drop in that time with an injury to Kolasinac just isn’t worth it imo.
Tierney should be back after the interlull and if we’re clever we only sanction Nachos departure after the Sp*rs game.
I say let him go in January at the earliest, if the club have to let him go. Give Tierney time to settle in. He might not be up to standard straight away, or may not even be good enough altogether. Letting Nacho go now would be risky.
Totally agree with this! Would be great to keep our Nacho man til he retires and would prefer to sell Kola, he’s a great lad, but he would actually command a transfer fee which would be nice. And Nacho can keep the sport warm and backed up for Tierney to come in and boss it 🙂
Seriously, we’re already on our backup on the right, so why would we play roulette with the left side too in a year when we’re saying getting back into the top 4 is critical?
I’d rather we actually have the option to play Nacho in a back three AND Kolasinac on the wingback when the need arises.
Kola may not be a great defender against the ball playing opponents but he’s great at defending his team mates. Don’t mind a character like that in the team. Jokes aside, I don’t think Nacho is significantly better offensively, Sead’s final ball last season was one of the most productive at Arsenal if not the most productive. Nacho’s passing is better but defensively, his age is showing, hasn’t been that great recently, routinely gets rinsed in 1-1s, recovery pace is also not there anymore. Don’t see the point of 3 LBs anyway, unnecessary burden on the wage bill, club won’t… Read more »
and allowed us to play a back 3, now we can’t
Would happily keep him until January at least if not next summer. His experience and versatility could prove extremely useful. Plus Tierney is not just going to come back from an injury that has kept him out since April at 100% and Kola hardly convinces at LB. Love Nacho!!
Well said mate
Keep him until January. Plays in a back 3 as well as LB. Kierney will take time to settle.
Now that would be the sensible option
For me, this is a deal that can wait til January. We have some big games in Septband need to let Tierney settle into the team after injury. Relying on Kolasinac makes me uncomfortable
Kola played well in the NLD last year. Totts will do well to remember not to square up to him again.
No no no. No no, no no no.
No no There’s No Limit
Would be very surprising if we sanction this now, seeing as we’re doing our best to get Mustafi out the door. Could see it happening in January though.
Because we have a similar player except older in Calamity Luiz.
Maybe he will be signed and loaned back to us for a year, like Saliba. /s
I REALLY hope this one doesn’t turn out to be true, we here other players leaving that we want to go but there still here! Nacho has been an amazing bargain signing, he still gets up and down that pitch and always puts in a 100% shift. Plus he’s a very likeable guy as well!!
No no no. Keep him until January. That makes a lot more sense. We need time to bed in Tierney
?
And the captain curse lives on. Sad to see him go if turns out true though.
No =[. I love nacho. Almost as much as his namesake!
I don’t think Emery wants him out. The only reasonable explanation is that Nacho wants to go or Raul wants him out. I read somewhere that his wife is very open too move back to Spain but I think Nacho also favours it. I think he is thinking: “Arsenal won’t extend my contract and Real Sociedad really wants me. I am 33 and I will be 34 next season. Maybe it is my last chance for a first tier football in La Liga.” He is one of my all time favourite players and it would be sad to see him… Read more »
Arseblog says he has this year plus an optional year in his contract with us. Why go on a 2 year deal to Sociedad when he has the security of 2 more with us?
I think this is a case of club trying to balance the books.
Hmm, anyone here called John?
Is the idea to only have 3-4 centre backs for a flexible back 3/4 and hope that Tierny won’t have a setback?
He is a great example of the type of experienced player you should have in your squad. Flexible and capable of doing a job when needed. These are the sort of players that matter in testing times when through injury or suspension cover is needed. We would be foolish to let him leave if we have Tierney out and even when he is back we need to give him time to bed in. That can only be facilitated with decent support.
Wow.!! Where did that come from..!
He’s playing in a position that requires athleticism, as Lichtsteiner can confirm, so unfortunately the dream can’t carry on forever.
Sad to see him go.
What’s the point if the fee is ‘small’?
Because he really wants to go, I imagine – at his age it’s the last move of his career. What kind of fee could we ask (and, more importantly, get) for a 33 year old with no sell-on value for Real Sociedad? We have to be realistic about this.
I’d have kept him if we could this season for his experience, but he’s been a good player for us so let’s wish him well.
Stay with us Nacho, we still need you.
CL football is worth tens of millions, I can’t see us getting more than £3-4mill for Monreal?
Kolasinac has some qualities, but his passing under pressure is atrocious, and Tierney’s injury record is a real worry.
Unless they think Saka can play left back? This seems risky.
Kolasinac’s best link up last season was with Iwobi, Aubameyang’s game isn’t to drop off into pockets, I’m not sure Aubameyang+Kolasinac on the left works, and if you remove Kolasinac’s strong point, which is powerful running into space, I’m not sure he’s going to be of much use.
And there goes our Premiership title. I hope this ‘small fee’ can play LB.
What title? Are you dreaming? Top 5 trophy.
There’s really nothing wrong with allowing a 33-year-old to leave, when you have younger options like Kolasinac and Tierney. Monreal is okay, but his age was exposed severally last season. We would happily thank him for his contribution for this big club. The CB side about him should not concern us, when we have all of Luiz, Sokratis, Chambers, Holding, Mavropanos, and even considering releasing Mustafi.
Your argument would only be valid if Kolasinac was an able defender which he is not. I would’ve much preferred to get rid of him asap for any amount. Tierney is injured, possibly injury prone and he’ll need time to settle into the team, so in the short term this move is a really bad one. Especially considering Nacho’s influence on and off the field. He may have slowed down a bit but he’s still fairly consistent and a good player – definitely much better than Kolasinac. He can also fill in at CB in a back three – Holding… Read more »
Man, you’re a fucking drag.
Obviously Unai must feel he can hone Kola’s defensive nuous with better coaching. Nothing wrong with balancing the books, obviously we can also reinforce our squad in January if needed. Kola isn’t as bad as some people make him out to be.
Kolasinac can improve.
monreal has reached his limit and is waning.
It’s a surprise to me. I thought we’d keep him for the season as his experience outweighs the small fee (confirmed in the article) that we’d get for him. That said, I guess it frees up some headway in the wage bill (he’s one of the better paid players at the club) with an eye on the newly started contract negotiations with Auba and Lacazette, who are unlikely to extend their stay for the same money. Now, if we could pull off something similar with Mustafi and Ozil we’d be awash with dosh!
For a couple of years there, he was arguable the best left back in the league. Sad to see him go. Would have been to have him retire here but maybe he wanted to go back home. Stay awesome, Nacho.
I thought Marca is the Spanish equivalent of The Sun? Take this story with a grain of salt. There is a use for all three of Monreal, Tierney, and Kolasinac this season. Monreal and Tierney will rotate at left back, very useful with those Europa League group stage games in the autumn, and Kolasinac will be a substitute brought on at left-wing if we’re winning a game and need to close it out. I would certainly keep all three this season.
Not necessarily. Just because the story is in Marca doesn’t make it incorrect.
We’ll have to wait for a comment – one way or the other – from Arsenal, but Monreal has been looking for a move back home, that’s not a secret. Such a move certainly makes sense at this stage of his career, and although I would have liked him to stay this season I’m sure the club wouldn’t stand in his way.
I didnt say it’s incorrect, I said take it with a pinch of salt. Marca is sensationalist click bait. We need all three of Monreal, Teirney, and Kolasanic this season, so I don’t think we’ll let Monreal leave after he only signed a new contract 2 months ago.
Hmmm. Still not sure what the real difference is between taking a story with a pinch of salt and discounting it (by implication, it won’t happen – so is incorrect).
I think it makes sense to keep him as his experience will be useful but I don’t think we can get the salt out immediately. Letting him go would free up money in the wage bill at the time we’re hoping to extend the contracts of Auba and Lacazette, which certainly won’t be cheap. Anyway, we’ll see.
Koscielny take note…this is how you get a move back to your home country at the end of your career. No tantrums, no strike. Nacho, you’ve been an excellent servant to our club and seemed to get even better the past couple of years for us.
Koscielny did us a favour. Take note.
We were trying to be cheap and depend on him again.
You didn’t watch the Wolves game with the vaunted pairing of Sokratis -Koscielny leaking 3 goals or the Chelsea final?
An agreement for him to go in January would make more sense surely?
No, No, No. He may have lost a step, but he is such a steady player and still very effective. Doesn’t turn the ball over, isn’t caught out of position, works his tail off, has great character, can play centrally as well, etc.. Not to mention we would be relying on Kolasinic who has his positives, but defending isn’t one of them, and Tierney who is injured now and we have no idea how quickly he’ll adapt to a new league. If we do let Mustafi go Monreal can provide cover centrally as well.
This is a bad idea
If there’s a bit of true to this, then we’re mental. Tierney haven’t recovered and as exciting as that signing was, he might need some time to adapt. Also, who will give us depth at LB? Sead is more of a wingback than a fullback and is better used as such when we go with 3 at the back. Also, Nacho can cover for CB if needed and this for me is quite a big deal. Hoping this “new” is just bollocks, because we kind of need him at the moment, and as others posters have said, I wouldn’t be… Read more »
Nacho is super valuable now as people have mentioned… Cb or Lb etc, and Tierney not ready yet.
I think Nacho could also be a great cdm… He can defend, pass, hold the ball well, and he has decent pace in that position as he ages. But maybe he just wants to be in Spain… keeping him would be my vote!
(Can’t wait for the game today : )
Metro UK is reporting that Emery has confirmed that Monreal could leave before the end of the month after Real Sociedad made a late move to bring him back to Spain, saying “With Nacho there is one possibility that’s open and we’re going to speak about that.” Not settled yet, of course, but the Liverpool game could be his last for us.
I will shed a tear. love the nacho man
Makes sense to me. Kolasinac has better future with us.
Nacho has been playing well but he is a player on the wane. His pace will always be an issue never mind calamity Luiz.
BUT I would think we may be better waiting to offload in January given Tierny unavailable for a while.