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Arsenal in talks over surprise deal to land £40m international

By on July 14, 2017

According to a report in the Metro, Arsenal could land Nemanja Matic after opening talks with Chelsea over a surprise swap deal involving Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.

The Ox’s future at the Emirates is in serious doubt as he’s in the final year of his contract and so far we’ve been unable to agree terms over an extension with the versatile midfielder.

The 23-year-old has been linked with a move to several clubs, including Chelsea, and it seems Arsene Wenger may have given up hope of keeping hold of him beyond the summer.

That’s because the Metro are citing a report from Sky Italia journalist Gianluca Di Marzio that claims Arsenal have made contact with Chelsea to propose a stunning straight swap deal involving Oxlade-Chamberlain and Matic.

The Serbian international is expected to leave Stamford Bridge following the impending arrival of Tiemoue Bakayoko from Monaco and the Metro say Man Utd are hoping to wrap-up a £40m deal.

However, Chelsea could be tempted to rebuff United’s advances and do business with Arsenal instead as it would mean Antonio Conte would get his hands on The Ox.

The Blues boss wants to bring in competition for Victor Moses and Oxlade-Chamberlain excelled in the right wing-back role during the closing stages of last season.

alex-oxlade-chamberlain arsenal

If Oxlade-Chamberlain makes it clear he won’t sign a new deal then we’ll have little option but to cash-in and a swap deal for Matic could work well for both parties.

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Let’s face it, if The Ox is going to leave he’s almost certainly going to join a Premier League rival so getting a top international midfielder in exchange would soften the blow.

However, my preference would still be for Ox to stay and sign a new deal at Arsenal, and I have a sneaky feeling that will happen eventually. I may just be an optimist, but I think most of the talk in the paper is coming from his agent as he looks to squeeze the best deal possible and feel he’ll sign an extension in the end.