Mikel Arteta wants to keep Gabriel Magalhaes at Arsenal amid Saudi Arabian interest
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta is eager to keep defender Gabriel Magalhaes at the club despite reports linking him with a lucrative move to Saudi Arabian side Al-Ittihad. The 25-year-old formed an instrumental partnership with William Saliba as Arsenal mounted a title challenge last season but dropped to the bench for his side’s opening Premier League games against Nottingham Forest and Crystal Palace.
Speaking ahead of Arsenal’s game against Fulham on Saturday, Arteta stressed Gabriel remains an important part of his plans. ‘Gabby is really important for us, an important player — there’s nothing going on at the moment,’ he said.
Arsenal’s Outgoing Business
Arsenal have already moved on Granit Xhaka, Pablo Mari, Auston Trusty and Matt Turner on permanent deals while Runar Alex Runarsson and Marquinhos have left on loan. Folarin Balogun is also poised to leave on a permanent deal with Arsenal agreeing a £40million deal with Monaco for the USA international.
Chelsea and Tottenham have registered an interest in the striker who scored 21 times last season on loan at Reims but Balogun has little interest at this stage in joining a Premier League rival. Kieran Tierney meanwhile is also close to an exit with a loan move to Real Sociedad reportedly agreed.
Asked about Arsenal’s outgoing business over the coming weeks, Arteta said: ‘There are some movements happening. The last week is going to be busy – nothing that we can announce at the moment.’
Arsenal’s Upcoming Fixtures
Arsenal have taken six points from their opening two games following narrow wins over Forest and Palace and welcome Fulham to the Emirates on Saturday afternoon.
The Gunners will then face West Ham, Sheffield United and Leicester City in their next three Premier League fixtures before taking on Liverpool in the fourth round of the Carabao Cup.
Conclusion
It looks like it’s going to be a busy end to the transfer window for Arsenal as they look to offload as many as seven more players before the window closes on 1 September. Mikel Arteta has made it clear that he wants to keep Gabriel Magalhaes at the club and it will be interesting to see if the Brazilian defender stays or makes a move to Saudi Arabia. For more news and updates on Arsenal, check out our sport page and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.