Henrikh Mkhitaryan has made it clear that he does not intend to continue his career with Arsenal and hopes that the club will be able to sell him to AS Roma when the transfer window opens.
The 31-year-old midfielder joined the Serie A outfit in September on a season-long deal and appears to be enjoying his spell in the Italian capital.
While some might argue his creative (albeit ridiculously inconsistent) presence has been missed at the Emirates, it seems hard to believe we’ll look to retain the services of a player who is one of our highest-earners.
At the time of his move to the Stadio Olimpico, it was reported the Romans would have the option to buy the player this summer. It’s hard to tell if a fee was set at the time, but with the transfer market likely to suffer from a lack of liquidity it’s likely we’ll have to lower our asking price. Sources in Italy suggest the original mooted fee could be halved to around €10 million.
When asked about his future, Corriere dello Sport claim the player had the following message for Arsenal: “My time in London is over, I hope you manage to find an agreement with Rome because my desire is to stay.”
Last week head coach Paulo Fonseca said, “I want him to stay and he also wants to stay, however, it should be clear that everything is now on hiatus, and we’ll have to talk to Arsenal. I want to continue working with him because he’s a great player and a great man.”
Mkhitaryan joined the Gunners from Manchester United in the Mino Raiola-concocted swap deal that saw Alexis Sanchez move the other way. They both made a load of dosh but neither made a real impact. Like Micki, Sanchez has since been shipped out on loan to Italy.
Why not take a wage cut then if you are so desperate to go there
Layman’s perspective of course but I don’t see any reason to argue about the price of a 31 year old player who didn’t work out for us in the first place. If Roma still have 10 million to spend we should take it and I say that with no malice. I genuinely wish him all the best at his new home should a deal be struck.
Yes please, even if it’s only for 5m I would agree. Get what you can get and move on.
United didn’t want him, AFC don’t want him, Roma do want him…..Do a deal and move on.
Roma are in a strong position, Mkhitaryan only wants Roma. He’s 31 until he turns 32, because that’s how it works, earning big money, with a year left on his deal, they’ll be aware we’re looking to cut costs. We have a first team squad of 29, which is far too many, particularly if we don’t qualify for Europe. We’re well stocked in the wide areas with Pepe, Nelson, Saka, Martinelli, Aubameyang. Keeping an unhappy player rarely ends well, they’ve got us where they want us, time to cut our losses and move on, there’s no value in dragging this… Read more »
Cut this waster loose…..
Adios!
Maybe we could use him to get Amadou Diawara, if Partey is not available.
Well let’s see how the negotiations go, will he want some some kind of pay off from Arsenal if Roma pay him less, will his agent want a pay off to facilitate the transfer, will the £10m fee from Roma end up in his and his agents pocket?
Roma have got their hands on our Micky and now they don’t want to let go. Tossers.
Sorry but who exactly would say he’s Presence is missed ? I would much rather Saka or martinelli or nelson
Bye bye mate. You had your moments, but not many of them. Shamefully treated regarding the Europa League final.
Should have sold when Roma made an offer in January. Take the cash and move on
Struggling to think of a transfer that has worked out worse for all parties concerned, than the Alexis – Mkhi swap?
(actually just remembered Sala, nevermind :/)
I’m sure it worked out just fine for Raiola
Other news : In a shock polling result, 86% of turkeys said they really loved Christmas.