Arsenal eyeing shock move to sign £249k-a-week star from UCL giants – report

Arsenal have shown interest in signing Atletico Madrid forward Joao Felix in the last few hours.

The Gunners have yet to make any signings during the ongoing transfer window, but they are in advanced talks with Bologna for defender Riccardo Calafiori.

Mikel Arteta’s side are also in the transfer market for a wide attacker and Mundo Deportivo claim that they have recently entered the race to sign Felix from Atletico.

The Portuguese star spent the recent campaign on loan with Barcelona where he scored 10 goals and provided six assists from 44 appearances in all competitions.

Felix has the desire to reunite with the Catalan club, but they can’t afford to sign him permanently, considering they can only spend 25 percent of incoming funds due to Financial Fair Play restrictions.

Hence, the 24-year-old has instructed his representative to find him a new club before July 27 – the deadline after which he would have to return to pre-season training with Atletico.

Benfica have proposed to acquire 50 percent of his rights for £17 million and in the last few hours, there has been interest from the Gunners. It is suggested that their playing style would suit Felix.

The forward would be open to returning to London, having previously been on loan at Chelsea.

Felix to Arsenal speculation could be agent-driven

Felix was linked with a loan move to the Gunners last year, but Chelsea won the race after agreeing to pay a significant loan fee on top of his weekly wages for six months.

The versatile forward struggled to make a meaningful impact for the Blues with just four goals from 20 outings. He scored with just nine percent of his shots, missing five big chances.

The Blues decided against re-signing him as a result. Felix’s time at Barcelona was equally frustrating despite his 16 goal contributions. He averaged only 49 minutes per appearance.

Felix was a regular starter in the first half of the campaign for the Blaugrana, but became an impact substitute in the back end of the season due to his inconsistent performances.

The Portuguese has the ability to play on the left wing or up front, but he tends to struggle in games. He has the knack for making goal contributions, but his overall output has been poor.

In our view, the speculation could be agent-driven to attract interest from elsewhere. It does not make sense for Arsenal to sign the £249,000 per week ace, who has failed to live up to his hype.

If Arsenal are eyeing a versatile forward with huge potential, they would be better off signing Nico Williams from Athletic Bilbao. He is comfortable playing from both wide positions.

Stats from Transfermarkt.com & Sofascore.com