Could Mikel Arteta do what Wenger couldn’t and bring Blaise Matuidi to the Premier League? The World Cup winner could leave Serie A giants Juventus.
Arsenal are hoping to finally sign £25 million Juventus star Blaise Matuidi over the summer, according to Calciomercato – a decade after Arsene Wenger tried to bring the Frenchman to the Emirates.
Back in the summer of 2009, a legendary tactician was looking to lure one of Europe’s hottest midfield prospects to North London.
At the time, Matuidi was a fresh-faced 22-year-old making a name for himself across the Channel at St Etienne. And, according to The Standard, Wenger had decided to put his faith in a young Matuidi rather than hand legendary former captain Patrick Vieira a second spell in the famous red and white shirt.
Wenger saw something special in Matuidi. But even he might not have anticipated the sheer levels of success that would follow a criminally underrated midfielder throughout his career.
Matuidi joined PSG instead of Arsenal and, after winning 16 trophies in the French capital, moved to Italy in the summer of 2018 in order to enhance his already remarkable list of honours. Successive Serie A titles have arrived at Juventus while Matuidi also tasted glory on the international stage, starring as France won the World Cup two years ago.
But with his long-term future at Juve uncertain, Calciomercato reports that Arsenal and Manchester United are in the race to sign the now-32-year-old. Can Mikel Arteta succeed where Arsene Wenger failed?
If so, Matuidi would bring invaluable big-game experience and a fierce winning mentality to a side lacking both of those attributes.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
