Arsenal player 'remains available' with Serie A giants yet to meet £25m asking price

Arsenal are hoping to sell a number of players this summer as they look to continue investing in new talent while balancing the books. The Gunners spent more than £200million in a bid to win the Pemier League title.

But having come up just short, Mikel Arteta now finds himself needing to add more talent. But it’s not as straightforward as simply snapping up whichever players are needed, with Profit and Sustainability rules keeping clubs in check these days.

The Premier League have made it clear they will punish clubs for overspending, already deducting points from Everton and Nottingham Forest. Arsenal must be careful if they don’t want to fall victim to a similar fate, but they do seem to have a plan.

The Gunners have a number of fringe players who can raise money if sold, including Emile Smith Rowe, Eddie Howe, Eddie Nketiah, Kieran Tierney and Jakub Kiwior, with Nuno Tavares and Albert Sambi Lokonga have already been offloaded on loan deals.

Kiwior is one of the most surprising players who is up for sale given he showed some real promise last season, but with Arsenal looking to sign a left-sided centre-back in Riccardo Calafiori, Kiwior is going to make way, with Calafiori also able to cover at left-back, while Oleksandr Zinchenko should be first choice on that side.

Inter Milan were credited with an interest for Kiwior, but transfer ‘insider’ Fabrizio Romano says offers have not been forthcoming up to this point. He tweeted: “Arsenal have not received any approach from Inter for Jakub Kiwior, nothing agreed even on player side. Kiwior remains available on the market but Arsenal now want permanent move or loan with mandatory clause. He could leave as Calafiori is joining #AFC.”

Arsenal will reportedly ask for £25million for Kiwkior, with the Gunners having signed the full-back for around £22.5million including add-ons. The defender is currently under contract until 2028 having penned a long-term deal last year.

Kiwior has travelled to the USA with Arsenal and will be a part of the club’s pre-season preparations for now, with the club set to deal with any enquiries as and when they arrive. Until anything is sealed, the defender will remain part of Arteta’s squad.

What Arteta has said about Kiwior

Speaking about Kiwior in the spring, Arteta said: “We made a decision to bring him in earlier because we believed we were assigned to have the role that he had, but he was going to need time and that was the case. We have made it difficult for him for two reasons: one because he hasn’t played that many minutes, and secondly because we’ve asked him to play in a position that he’s never played in before.

“It is like pulling William Saliba into full-back and saying: ‘tomorrow, perform and do what we have to do. I think he has adapted really well and he is playing better and better, you can tell that he is earning confidence and physically he is better. He understands the role much better and he has been really good.”