Arsenal transfer news LIVE: Paris Saint-Germain interested in Odegaard, Gunners still favourite to sign Rice as Xhaka all-but confirms exit
Keep up to date with all the latest transfer news, gossip and rumours from Arsenal in talkSPORT's live blog.
The summer window is almost open and Mikel Arteta is out to boost his squad to give them the best chance of mounting another title charge next season.
The Gunners came close to a first Premier League title in 19 years having finished five points behind champions Manchester City.
With City's dominance unlikely to waver and the clubs who finished below them set to get stronger, Arsenal are now set for huge activity both in and out of the Emirates to maintain their status alongside the elite.
Top stories
- Arsenal still favourites for Declan Rice despite Bayern Munich entering race
- Granit Xhaka has appeared to confirm that he's leaving Arsenal with cryptic goodbye
- Mikel Arteta hints that further contract extensions could be on the way after Bukayo Saka's new deal
Follow our live blog below for all the latest news from Arsenal…
Paris Saint-Germain have reportedly lodged a surprise bid to sign Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard.
According to the Mail, the Ligue 1 champions are considering a shock move for the 24-year-old after an exceptional season in which he scored 15 goals and provided eight assists in 37 Premier League appearances.
But the report adds that PSG could find it tough to persuade Odegaard to leave the Emirates this summer, with the Norwegian settled in London and a key part of Mikel Arteta’s plans going forward.
Arsenal are set to be rivalled in the race to sign Real Madrid Marco Asensio by former manager Unai Emery at Aston Villa.
Onda Cero claimed that the Gunners are one of three main options for Asensio alongside AC Milan and Paris Saint-Germain as the Spaniard gets set to become a free agent when his contract expires this summer.
Marca now report that Emery has spoken to Asensio on the phone in an effort to tempt the 27-year-old into joining Villa on a free transfer following their qualification to Europe.
Gabriel Jesus has been speaking about his plans to help spear Arsenal to glory next season having missed a large chunk on the club’s title challenge this term through injury.
He said: “The players who have a holiday can enjoy and have a great time with family and friends, and those who go to the national team can enjoy that a lot, then have a break after, and come back for the next season.
“I am so excited [for it]. I was a little bit unlucky about my injury.
“I missed a big part of the season but my mentality has always been my fitness and then to help my team, so next my main target is to be fit all season and help my team.”
Arsenal sporting director Edu has made a strong statement about the club’s transfer activity ahead of a busy summer.
“I think we are all happy to see the progression of the team and the club. That’s the main reason we feel proud of the season. To be fair, we have the taste that we could make something really special”, Edu told LondonWorld.
“We have to respect what we have done and must keep going in the right direction, keep the mentality to try and win important things. Let’s keep going in the direction we planned. Let’s keep going for next season.”
“We work in the best way possible,” added Edu.
“We try to do as best as we can to make this squad stronger and better. That’s our main purpose, to see the progression and to see the club moving forward in the right direction.”
Arsenal target Declan Rice has spoken out about his future as West Ham gear up for a Europa Conference League final.
Quizzed if winning in Prague next week against Fiorentina would be the perfect way to end his Hammers career, Rice replied: “I’ve not really focused on any of that, to be honest.
“My main focus this season, from the World Cup onwards, has been getting us out of a relegation battle and, of course, having one eye on winning this trophy.
“Everything else is just noise and speculation. Obviously, I can’t help that, it comes with playing.
“But my main focus is playing for West Ham and winning this final. My heart’s set on that, doing it for the club, for my family, for the fans and that’s my only focus.
“I want to make them all very happy and my focus is on doing that.”
Arsenal legend Ian Wright has had his say on club target Youri Tielemans as he becomes a free agent this summer following Leicester’s relegation.
“So many of their players have hit bad form and they just can’t take the hit. Look at Tielemans,” said Wright on his podcast Wrighty’s House.
“Tielemans’ drop-off this season is quite sad, you know. It [missing out on a move last summer] has got to have had some effect. I thought he would have got the move and he was playing the kind of football where you’re thinking ‘yeah he can’t stay there for much longer’.”
“But what’s happened is that you watch him and he hasn’t got the dynamism that he had,” he added.
Hello and welcome to talkSPORT's live blog for all the latest Arsenal news this summer.Our top stories are that Arsenal main favourites to land Declan Rice ahead of Bayern Munich, talkSPORT understands.Thomas Tuchel has notified Rice’s camp of his interest, however, the Bundesliga champions believe he’s likely to stay in the Premier League.Rice is also believed to have spoken to former Chelsea boss Tuchel but Arsenal are still leading the race to sign the West Ham captain – who has also attracted interest from the Blues and Manchester United.The 24-year-old England international has been earmarked as the man to replace midfielder Granit Xhaka – who has appeared to confirm that he’s leaving north London, posting a cryptic ‘goodbye’ message on his Instagram story.Xhaka, who is entering the final year of his contract, has been heavily linked with a move back to Germany this summer with Bayer Leverkusen keen on a transfer.After scoring twice against Wolves on Sunday, the Swiss international posted a picture of himself on his story wearing some Puma attire, captioned: “Two goals for the goodbye.”Whilst it’s likely Xhaka won’t be signing a new deal, Mikel Arteta has hinted that further contract extensions could follow Bukayo Saka’s.“Great news for the club,” Arteta told reporters after Saka committed his long-term future to the club.“The club has done a great job. He’s a crucial player for us who represents our club in the best possible way. Hopefully there are a few more to come.”
