Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal and Graham Potter’s Chelsea are ready to pay a loan fee of £5 million to Atletico Madrid to sign Joao Felix on loan in the January transfer window, according to CBS Sports journalist Ben Jacobs in GiveMeSport.
The well-known and well-respected journalist has reported that Arsenal and Chelsea both feel that if they are to pay Felix’s salary in full, then a loan fee of £5 million is fair.
The 23-year-old Portugal international, who can operate as a forward, attacking midfielder or winger, reportedly earns £250,000 per week as salary at former La Liga champions Atletico.
Arsenal want to sign Felix on a loan deal from Atletico.
Manchester United have also been linked with the youngster, who played for Portugal at the 2022 Qatar World Cup.
Arsenal and Chelsea stance on Joao Felix
Jacobs said: “So, clubs, I think, might play the slightly longer game with Joao Felix.
“And my understanding remains if it’s to be a loan deal, clubs like Arsenal and Chelsea feel like somewhere in the region of £5 million is a fair loan fee if they are to take on all of his wages.
“And the loan fee is something in the region of double that at this point, so it’s kind of a tricky one because that’s quite a big drop in order to satisfy the clubs.”
Too low?
In our view, Atletico Madrid are unlikely to let Joao Felix leave on loan for just £5 million.
We believe that the Spanish club will demand much more for the forward, described as “a world class talent” by former Liverpool star Jose Enrique on Instagram this month.
After all, £5 million is really not much for a big club such as Atletico, especially if Arsenal, Chelsea or Manchester United do not have to commit to making the loan deal permanent in the summer of 2023.
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