According to German outlet Bild, Schalke are closing in on a loan deal to sign Arsenal’s Sead Kolasinac this summer.
Sky Sports claimed last week that the Royal Blues were in talks with Arsenal over a potential move. The Gunners would likely prefer to move him on permanently but Schalke are eyeing for a loan deal with an option to buy him next summer.
A loan move isn’t straightforward either due to the Bosnian’s massive salary of £7.22 million every year which equates to about £140,000 a week. Schalke are in no position to pay that which requires Kolasinac to take a pay cut. (Sky Sports)
Arsenal signed the Bosnian international from Schalke on a free transfer. That forced Arsene Wenger’s side to pay him a huge salary then which has come back to haunt the Gunners now in this very difficult financial climate.
Getting Kolasinac off the wage bill will ease the Gunners’ financial burden, even if they will have to pay a part of his wages. The defender agreeing to a pay cut would have been the stumbling block but it looks like there is some good news.
Bild claim that the full-back is more than happy to take a pay cut to return to his former side. However, he does have a strange demand which has raised a few eyebrows among supporters.
The report claims that Kolasinac has demanded to be Schalke’s captain upon his return. That really is weird considering that his move back to Gelsenkirchen this summer will only be a season-long loan deal.
Kolasinac is adored back at Schalke but it isn’t at all a realistic demand to make, especially when he is going back on loan. Even Thierry Henry, an Arsenal legend, had to play under Robin van Persie when he returned on loan to Arsenal in 2012.
Arsenal fans took to social media to respond to Kolasinac’s demands. It is safe to say, it wasn’t something that they were expecting to hear.
Here’s how a few Gunners supporters reacted to the news
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