Back in 2014, former Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Jamie Redknapp described Arsenal’s £16 million addition of Danny Welbeck as the ‘bargain of the century’.
Now, these comments might not have aged like the finest bottle of Marchesi Antinori. But you can see where Redknapp was coming from at the time. Welbeck, after all, was a 23-year-old England international arriving from a bonafide top-flight rival in Manchester United.
Before a relentless series of injuries took their toll, Welbeck was viewed as a future number nine for the English national team. A Premier League superstar in the making, a man with an excellent track record in the biggest of games.
Only two years previously, Welbeck scored a wonderful backheel for England at the European Championships.
But Arsenal’s ‘bargain of the century’? It’s fair to say there are a few other, more appropriate, recipients of that particular moniker.
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Martin Odegaard and Aaron Ramsdale have already repaid hefty investments with some sublime performances under Mikel Arteta. Alexis Sanchez was a bargain from Barcelona. Santi Cazorla, Aaron Ramsey, Robin van Persie and Gilberto Silva represent excellent value for money too.
And how much would it take to sign Gabriel Martinelli now. Less than three-years after he arrived at the Emirates as a little-known £7 million teenager?
But if you’re looking for bargains, players snapped up for far lower than their market value, look no further than Youri Tielemans. The Belgian international, after all, could soon become the greatest pound-for-pound addition in modern English football history.
‘Bargain of the Century’?
According to Het Nieuwsblad, Leicester City were demanding around £75 million in the summer of 2021.
12 months later, with Tielemans refusing to extend a contract which expires next year, it is understood that the Foxes could do business for as little as £25 million.
That, by the way, is less than Arsenal were paying for Shkodran Mustafi in 2016.
What’s more, Tielemans is a genuinely elite-level playmaker, superior arguably to any Arsenal midfielder since Cesc Fabregas departed for Barcelona a decade ago. He’s proven in the Premier League. Perfectly-suited to Mikel Arteta’s style of play. And, at 24, has his best years ahead of him.
According to Goal, Arsenal entered talks with Tielemans’ agent a couple of months ago. The Belgium international has made no secret of his desire to play Champions League football either.
And an Arsenal side with 11 wins in their last 14 league games are in pole position to secure a top-four berth, making the Gunners all the more tempting to a masterful midfielder who looks every-inch the perfect foil for the more defensively-minded Thomas Partey in Arteta’s engine room.
‘One of Europe’s top midfielders’
“He has progressed into one of Europe’s top midfielders. And he’s only going to get better,” Leicester boss Brendan Rodgers says of a man who’s long-range rocket won the FA Cup final in May 2021.
“An incredible professional. His mindset is at the highest level. He’s one of the best professionals I’ve ever worked with.
“If you look across the board in terms of ideal footballers, being mentally tough, being intelligent, having bravery, having quality, he ticks every one of those boxes.
“At 24 years of age, he’s a brilliant player.”
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