Arsenal Miss Out on Fofana as Sunderland Seals Deadline Day Deal
Arsenal’s search for a new winger has taken a late and painful hit, with Malick Fofana heading to Sunderland after the Gunners walked away from Lyon’s asking price.
Arsenal opened talks with the Ligue 1 club on Monday, having earmarked the 21-year-old as a key option to bolster their attacking depth. Fofana was understood to be open to a move to north London and, according to reports, even held discussions with Mikel Arteta.
Then the deal stalled.
Lyon wanted around €40million. Arsenal refused to go that high. That hesitation opened the door for a Premier League rival to pounce.
Sunderland moved decisively, striking an agreement with Lyon for a €30million fee plus add-ons that could push the total closer to the French club’s original valuation. While Arsenal haggled, Sunderland closed.
For the Gunners, the timing could hardly be worse. With Leandro Trossard and Gabriel Martinelli both leaving this summer, Arteta’s squad is thin on the left flank. The club have already brought in Christos Tzolis from Club Brugge earlier in the window, but the plan clearly involved at least one more reinforcement out wide.
Instead, Fofana will now fly to the north east for a medical, sealing a Deadline Day move that few would have predicted at the start of the window and one that lands as a significant blow to Arsenal’s late-market plans.
Fofana had also been on Crystal Palace’s radar earlier in the summer, with the Eagles close to an agreement with Lyon, but the winger did not want a switch to Selhurst Park. Sunderland, though, have offered the project and the package that unlocked the deal.
Arsenal’s numbers in attacking areas are set to be stretched even further. Ethan Nwaneri is due to undergo a medical at Borussia Dortmund ahead of a loan move, another young option temporarily off the board as Arteta reshapes his squad.
Deadline Day is supposed to bring late drama. For Arsenal, it has brought a question instead: where does the next winger come from now?
