It’s likely that it could be a case of selling players before any new arrivals come in at Arsenal this summer, but one of the main priorities is finding a midfield partner for Thomas Partey.
Granit Xhaka is a good player but he’s not reliable and he’s not good enough to play for a club that has genuine top-four ambitions, so it does look like a good decision to offload him to Roma:
While that move hasn’t been completely finalised yet, it’s been mooted for a few weeks and it is expected that Xhaka will link up with Jose Mourinho next season.
That also means that a replacement needs to come in, and a report from Todofichajes has indicated that an agreement is already in place to sign Ruben Neves from Wolves for around £40m.
It’s suggested that the player is very keen to make the move and it will be a four-year deal that sees him increase his salary, but he also looks like he could be a definite upgrade on Xhaka.
The Swiss midfielder may bring more aggression to his game but Neves is a more composed player who should provide a solid base next to Partey in the midfield, while he also has a better range of passing and he’s good for a few goals from distance too.
Neves is also only 24 years old and he comes with Premier League experience so it looks like a safe signing, and it should be one that improves Arsenal if it goes ahead.