Liverpool have genuine interest in bargain Mason Mount signing
Liverpool’s interest in Mason Mount is genuine and the Chelsea midfielder will be able to use this to his advantage in contract talks. But even before Chelsea’s new owners officially came in, renewing Mount’s contract was a high priority and this remains the case.
Talks have stalled to some extent, although Chelsea were always focused on a busy January window and prioritising Mount at the same time wouldn’t have necessarily changed much because the sides are quite far apart on terms. Mount’s contract expires in summer 2024 and Liverpool know they stand a chance of getting a bargain.
Chelsea still really want to keep Mount, even though he hasn’t hit the productivity levels of last season when he scored 11 Premier League goals. They face a few challenges, though. Mount expects a similar package to Reece James, and you can understand why if he’s valuing his worth on campaign.
The financials (in terms of the base wage) may not actually prove an insurmountable stumbling block. Mount is wrongly being billed by some as greedy and I don’t think that’s true. It’s really more about Mount agreeing to the ownership’s new approach: long-term contracts – which aren’t always as easy to get players to commit to as you might think – with incentive-driven clauses and, at the other extreme, decreases if Champions League football isn’t met. As I understand it, all Chelsea’s January signings have UCL-specific clauses.
Chelsea are now expected to pick up talks again at the end of the season and will be encouraged by the fact Mount has previously indicated he wants to extend his stay at the club where he’s been since he was six. A renewal is not guaranteed or close but the desire to find an agreement (and Chelsea’s appreciation for Mount) hasn’t changed.
What has, however, is perhaps Mount’s ‘automatic’ place in the team right now. It’s a shame some fans have turned on and almost scapegoated Mount for Chelsea’s slump. I think it’s tough for a longer-standing player to adapt to so many new faces, too, and I still expect Mount to rediscover his form in the second half of the season. But it can’t be easy going from being universally lauded to being singled out, sometimes before he’s even kicked a ball. Mount is a fantastic player and personality and Chelsea know what he’s capable of regardless of his lull in form.
Arsenal make Ivan Fresneda a summer priority
Arsenal will look at a right back this summer to add a bit of depth and plan for the long term. Even though they dramatically won at Aston Villa at the weekend, Ben White wasn’t at his best and was dropped prior to that in the home loss to Manchester City. And in that game White’s replacement, Takehiro Tomiyasu, gifted Kevin de Bruyne the opener.
As an aside, it was fantastic to see Martin Odegaard going straight over to Tomiyasu to offer some words of encouragement. Odergaard has been tremendous this season as both a player and captain.
Arsenal’s priority remains Ivan Fresneda, who they tried to sign in January. Fresneda opted to stay at Real Valladolid until the end of the season despite offers from both the Gunners and Borussia Dortmund. Fresneda’s agent Luis Bardaji actually said up to 30 teams had made enquiries for the 18-year-old. Newcastle were also tracking him.
In the end Fresneda was reluctant to move, even with options from some suitors to be loaned back. Despite being a fantastic prospect, he’s still developing and has still played less than 15 LaLiga games. It makes sense he didn’t want to rush into anything with summer giving him time to transition to a new club.
Arsenal haven’t seriously explored Inter’s Denzel Dumfries. He’s been on Chelsea and Manchester United’s radar, but both clubs felt the price was too high (Inter were quoting figures in excess of £40m. We wait and see if that drops). Chelsea have since signed Malo Gusto.
In some ways it’s difficult for both Chelsea, Newcastle and Manchester United because their starting right-back or wing-back is so strong. Dumfries is quite versatile, but ultimately any right-sided defender coming into those three clubs isn’t going to suddenly replace Reece James, Kieren Trippier or Diogo Dalot.
More generally, there are a few other full-backs to keep an eye on. Leverkusen’s Jeremie Frimpong is being tracked by Newcastle and Manchester United. And Southampton’s Kyle Walker-Peters will almost certainly be on the move if Saints go down. Tottenham considered a return and Chelsea have looked at him the past.
Tino Livramento is another intriguing option, who has had horrific luck with injuries. The 20-year-old was magnificent last season until he picked up a serious ACL injury against Brighton last April and recently suffered another set-back this January when returning with the Saints’ B team.
Chelsea have a buy-back option active in 2023, but it’s not thought they’ll activate it, especially now Gusto has signed from Lyon. And all suitors will obviously have doubts given his long spell out on the sidelines. But Livramento will be monitored when fit with a view to a possible move over the next 2-3 windows by both Arsenal and Manchester City. And if he hadn’t suffered his injury he may already be at one of those two clubs already.
I keep reading how Arsenal are targeting strikers for the summer. I even read an article about us signing a French striker. Have all these journalists forgotten that we have the top French Striker Balogun, who is currently on fire. Why on earth would anyone suggest we need to buy a striker when we have Jesus coming back, Nketiah and Balogun who will hopefully join the first team squad in the summer. Just do your homework Journalists and stop writing crap.