Arsenal have admitted defeat in their pursuit for Ajax defender Lisandro Martinez amid increased interest from Manchester United, and are reportedly set to rekindle an old transfer flame as they seek an alternative in the form of Mykola Matviyenko.
It was reported that Ajax were not keen to let Martinez leave this summer, but they have now changed their stance amid increased pressure to sell from both Manchester United and the player himself, who would like a move to the Premier League.
Any fee will be in excess of 50m euros (£43m), with the last offer around this mark from Erik ten Hag’s new side having been rejected.
Excl: Manchester United executives, in Amsterdam to meet with Ajax and so trying to seal Lisandro Martínez deal. Personal terms agreed with Argentinian centre back. ?? #MUFC
Manchester United had €50m bid [add-ons included] rejected last week, but Ajax are now open to sell. pic.twitter.com/jlo52IIVJc
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) July 13, 2022
And such a high price tag has forced the Gunners to abandon their pursuit of the Argentine, with their attentions now turning elsewhere.
That is according to the Daily Mail, who report that ‘United had been battling it out with Arsenal for the versatile Argentina defender, 24, but it appears the Gunners have cooled their interest in him. They have turned their attention to Shakhtar Donetsk and Ukraine defender Mykola Matviyenko.’
2GXNYEH Shakhtar Donetsk?s Mykola Matvienko
Arsenal linked once more
Arsenal were linked with Mykola Matvienko in Mikel Arteta’s first transfer window in charge, when they were quoted a fee of around £30m to sign the then-23-year-old Ukrainian defender.
Capable of playing either as a left-back or a left-sided centre-back, he was eventually dropped as a target in favour of Pablo Mari, who the Gunners signed for £7m that January.
Now contracted until 2025, the 26-year-old defender may be on the upper end of Arsenal’s target age profile this summer, but could yet prove a valuable addition.
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Premier League table
| # | Team | MP | D | P |
| 1 | Leeds United | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2 | Manchester City | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 3 | Manchester United | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 4 | West Ham United | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 5 | Everton FC | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 6 | Southampton FC | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 7 | Chelsea FC | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 8 | Arsenal FC | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 9 | Newcastle United | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 10 | Leicester City | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 11 | Liverpool FC | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 12 | Aston Villa | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 13 | Tottenham Hotspur | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 14 | Fulham FC | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 15 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 16 | Crystal Palace | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 17 | Nottingham Forest | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 18 | Brighton & Hove Albion | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 19 | AFC Bournemouth | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 20 | Brentford FC | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Player | Team | Goals |
|---|---|---|
| Salah, Mohamed | Liverpool FC | 23 |
| Son, Heung Min | Tottenham Hotspur | 23 |
| Ronaldo, Cristiano | Manchester United | 18 |
| Kane, Harry | Tottenham Hotspur | 17 |
| Mane, Sadio | Liverpool FC | 16 |
| De Bruyne, Kevin | Manchester City | 15 |
| Jota, Diogo | Liverpool FC | 15 |
| Vardy, Jamie | Leicester City | 15 |
| Zaha, Wilfried | Crystal Palace | 14 |
| Sterling, Raheem | Manchester City | 13 |
| Bowen, Jarrod | West Ham United | 12 |
| Maddison, James | Leicester City | 12 |
| Toney, Ivan | Brentford FC | 12 |
| Mount, Mason | Chelsea FC | 11 |
| Saka, Bukayo | Arsenal FC | 11 |
| Mahrez, Riyad | Manchester City | 11 |
| Richarlison | Everton FC | 11 |
| Pukki, Teemu | Norwich City | 11 |
| Raphinha | Leeds United | 11 |
| Watkins, Ollie | Aston Villa | 11 |
| Player | Team | Red Cards | Yellow Cards |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mings, Tyrone | Aston Villa | 0 | 11 |
| Xhaka, Granit | Arsenal FC | 1 | 10 |
| Tarkowski, James | Burnley FC | 0 | 11 |
| Firpo, Junior | Leeds United | 0 | 11 |
| Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United | 0 | 10 |
| Gallagher, Conor | Crystal Palace | 0 | 10 |
| Brownhill, Josh | Burnley FC | 0 | 10 |
| Bednarek, Jan | Southampton FC | 0 | 10 |
| Bissouma, Yves | Brighton & Hove Albion | 0 | 10 |
| Moreno, Rodrigo | Leeds United | 0 | 9 |
| Neves, Ruben | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 0 | 9 |
| Romeu, Oriol | Southampton FC | 0 | 9 |
| Rudiger, Antonio | Chelsea FC | 0 | 9 |
| Mctominay, Scott | Manchester United | 0 | 9 |
| Salisu, Mohammed | Southampton FC | 0 | 8 |
| Ronaldo, Cristiano | Manchester United | 0 | 8 |
| Toney, Ivan | Brentford FC | 0 | 8 |
| Dennis, Emmanuel | Watford FC | 0 | 7 |
| Richarlison | Everton FC | 0 | 8 |
| Pogba, Paul | Manchester United | 1 | 7 |
| Player | Team | Assists |
|---|---|---|
| Salah, Mohamed | Liverpool FC | 13 |
| Alexander-Arnold, Trent | Liverpool FC | 12 |
| Barnes, Harvey | Leicester City | 11 |
| Kane, Harry | Tottenham Hotspur | 10 |
| Bowen, Jarrod | West Ham United | 10 |
| Mount, Mason | Chelsea FC | 10 |
| Robertson, Andy | Liverpool FC | 10 |
| Maddison, James | Leicester City | 9 |
| James, Reece | Chelsea FC | 9 |
| Pogba, Paul | Manchester United | 9 |
| Cancelo, Joao | Manchester City | 9 |
| De Bruyne, Kevin | Manchester City | 8 |
| Jesus, Gabriel | Manchester City | 8 |
| Kulusevski, Dejan | Tottenham Hotspur | 8 |
| Son, Heung Min | Tottenham Hotspur | 7 |
| Saka, Bukayo | Arsenal FC | 7 |
| Antonio, Michail | West Ham United | 7 |
| Lacazette, Alexandre | Arsenal FC | 7 |
| Mbeumo, Bryan | Brentford FC | 7 |
| Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United | 6 |
