Arsenal set to miss out on transfer windfall as 'stance changes' over £40m fringe star

Arsenal could soften in their stance over one key star amid transfer difficulties, according to reports. The Gunners look set to spend significantly again this summer after racking up a spending total of more than £200million last year.

Mikel Arteta knows he needs a little more quality to finally end the long wait for another Premier League title, but financial rules are proving tricky to negotiate, and sales will need to be commissioned to balance the books.

The likes of Emile Smith Rowe, Reiss Nelson, Eddie Nketiah, Jakub Kiwior and Kieran Tierney are all set to be allowed to leave, with Albert Sambi Lokonga and Nuno Tavares both having left on loan. Aaron Ramsdale is another who could depart having been relegated to second choice behind David Raya last season.

With Arsenal paying £27million to make Raya’s deal permanent, a Ramsdale departure looks all-but certain, and recent reports have suggested that the Gunners have already started looking for a new number two.

Ramsdale wants regular football, which is no surprise given he is a starting calibre Premier League goalkeeper who is still only 26 years of age. The England number two said recently: "No footballer wants to not play. I’ve had a tough year personally not playing and I never want to do that again. It was tough, it was tough. But I have my release now, I’m now here (with England), I’ve got the greatest honour, the greatest badge on my chest, I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, if I play a minute or no minutes, it will be the pinnacle for me, the best day ever."

According to HITC, with Arsenal struggling to generate interest in the goalkeeper with the £40million asking price they have, it’s claimed they are now open to loan proposals. That would see the Gunners miss out on a key transfer windfall as they look to balance the books, but there may be some wisdom in playing the long game here. While Arsenal may not get £40million for Ramsdale now, if he goes out on loan and impresses as a starter this season, he will be much more likely to generate that kind of fee this time next year.

What Ramsdale said about becoming number two

The goalkeeper told The Guardian last year after losing the number one stop at Arsenal: “Because it’s one of the first times it’s happened with the situation, it has been difficult. There are times where you’re doing the right thing but it’s the wrong thing and if you don’t do it, it’s the wrong thing. So it’s a double-edged sword.

“There’s a lot … a lot of attention. It’s a position where it’s famously said if you’re not spoken about, it means you’ve done a good job. There’s a lot of talk at the minute. Whether it is me or David who plays we need to be able to just focus and play but at the same time, it’s a strange, big headline. It’s one that we’re working through as a club and it’s one that the manager puts in front of us and we have to deal with it. That is what we are doing.”