According to the Times (subscription required), Arsenal are set to allow Henrikh Mkhitaryan to join loan club Roma on a free transfer this summer in order to make some savings.
The Times claim that the Gunners can save around £10m in wages by making this move, it will be interesting to see what fans will make of this surprising decision.
The Mirror reported not too long ago that the north London outfit were hoping to sell the Armenian star for around £10m, the attacking midfielder still has a year left on his current contract.
If the Gunners are working on allowing the 31-year-old to leave for nothing, it must be because the side have so far struggled to agree a transfer fee with Roma – who appear to be the only side that appeal to the ace.
Roma recently announced that they’d reached an agreement with the Gunners to extend the attacker’s loan deal, whilst hinting at a ‘preliminary deal’ for next season.
Perhaps the free transfer is what they were alluding to all this time.
Mkhitaryan joined Arsenal in January 2018 as part of the doomed swap deal for all parties that took Alexis Sanchez to Manchester United.
The versatile attacking midfielder struggled in 18 months with the Gunners, which led to the club loaning the ace out last summer.
Mkhitaryan has rejuvenated himself with Roma, much like teammate Chris Smalling whose on loan from United, the attacker has scored six goals and registered three assists in 17 Serie A outings this season.
The former Borussia Dortmund star has played most of his football for Paulo Fonseca’s side on the wing, but has also starred in a central attacking midfield role.
With Arsenal set to be working out on a limited budget this summer, is this move necessary by the Gunners or should they attempt to hold out for a side that will pay a fee for Mkhitaryan?