Liverpool could’ve signed reported £35m Arsenal target – for £1m

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Will Arsenal’s gain by Premier League leaders Liverpool’s loss with Espanyol’s Marc Roca apparently set to join Mikel Arteta’s Gunners squad?

A move to England has been a long time coming for Marc Roca.

Back in 2016, a teenager with a £1 million release clause found himself in the crosshairs of Liverpool just two months after making his La Liga debut for Espanyol (Marca).

But, in what could prove to be a rare example of one slipping through the Merseysider’s net, Roca now appears to be on his way to join a bonafide Premier League rival instead.

A left-footed, deep-lying midfielder who shone as Spain won the U21 European Championships last summer, Sport claims that the 23-year-old has an offer on the table from none other than Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal.

A £35 million price-tag is likely to test the depth of Arsenal’s pockets but, considering that Roca averages far more tackles per game than any of the Gunners’ current players, this looks every inch like the Gilberto Silva replacement they have needed for, what, 12 years now?

Now, it’s fair to say Liverpool have barely put a foot wrong in the transfer market since the Jurgen Klopp – Michael Edwards partnership started to take shape. They have made an art form out of snapping up budding young prospects before transforming them into world stars, from Sadio Mane to Andy Robertson, Jordan Henderson to Virgil van Dijk.

But failing to press ahead with a £1 million deal for one of the most promising young midfielders in the game, one who has been compared to a young Xabi Alonso no less, might just be one Liverpool live to regret. Especially if he ends up dominating Premier League midfield battles at Arsenal.