As you may have heard, Arsenal are currently attempting to sign Youri Tielemans and Pedro Neto ahead of the September 1st deadline.
The Gunners are currently in talks with Wolves over a £50m deal for the latter, while one journalist believes the north Londoners will submit a late bid for the Leicester No.8 before the deadline.
In our view, there is a good chance of both deals happening, although Mikel Arteta and the Arsenal fans will surely be a bit annoyed after what happened to the pair last night.
What’s the story?
Well, Tielemans and Neto will not be able to play in the Carabao Cup if they do join Arsenal.
Bruno Lage withdrew Adama Traore in place of the Portugal international in the 62nd minute as Wolves defeated Preston by a 2-1 scoreline, whereas Brendan Rodgers started the Belgium international against Stockport.
The Foxes struggled as they were held to a 0-0 draw, and required a penalty shootout to progress.
Of course, it isn’t the end of the world for Arsenal to sign two cup-tied players, although it is a slight inconvenience for Arteta, who will surely want both available for every competition if their moves to north London materialise.
Youri Tielemans & Pedro Neto would take Arsenal up a level
When you look at a top, top side like Manchester City, they have at least two quality players in each position.
Of course, you risk leaving some players unhappy when stockpiling like this – see Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko – but if Arteta can add Tielemans and Neto to his squad, the Gunners would look in fine shape.
Their arrivals would potentially allow the Gunners to go that one step further in a cup competition – aside from the Carabao Cup – as Arteta would have a fresher squad prepared to go the distance in the business end of the season.
At the end of the day, Arteta is going to be judged on silverware at the Emirates Stadium, and a deep squad packed with quality is undoubtedly required in order to win trophies nowadays, given the sheer volume of football on the schedule.
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