Arsenal have received a boost in their pursuit of Joao Felix as Atlético Madrid began their search for a replacement.
What’s the story?
Well, it was Fabrizio Romano who told Give Me Sport that Arsenal are currently in talks to sign the 23-year-old.
According to AS in Spain, Atlético Madrid have shortlisted Marcus Thuram, Borja Iglesias and Enes Ünal as potential replacements after Gil Martin – CEO of the Spanish side – publicly revealed that Felix is up for sale.
Fabrizio Romano quotes the 59-year-old as saying: “Joao Felix is top level but because of his relationship with Simeone and game time, we feel that it makes sense to consider potential bids to sell him.”
The reliable Italian journalist added that Atlético Madrid would like to receive a fee in the region of €100m (£88m) for their No.7 in 2023, as they aim to recoup as much of their initial £113m investment as possible.
Felix joined Diego Simeone’s side for the club-record amount from Benfica back in 2019.
In our view, an £88m asking price is optimistic, given the fact Atlético Madrid fans have seen Felix score just four goals in 18 appearances so far this season.
Nevertheless, we believe that is mainly down to Simeone’s defensive style of play.
In a far more fluid system under Mikel Arteta, we feel Felix would thrive, and go on to fulfil the potential that saw him mentioned in the same breath as Kylian Mbappe during his breakout year at Benfica.
Arsenal must pounce on Joao Felix opportunity
The chance to sign a prodigy like Felix does not come around very often, and his next move could well turn out to be his last for many years if he can settle in quickly – only a massive fee would prise him away if he plays as we know he can.
Of course, some Arsenal fans may argue that Arteta doesn’t need Felix in addition to Mykhaylo Mudryk, who has recently been the subject of a €60m (£56m) bid from the north Londoners.
However, nobody knows if Gabriel Jesus will return from his knee injury as the same player, so another centre-forward to help Eddie Nketiah certainly wouldn’t go amiss, with Mudryk regarded as a winger.
Be sure to keep an eye on this situation, as it isn’t unrealistic to think that both Felix and Mudryk could arrive.
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