Arsenal Transfer Rumors 2018: Gunners Hold Talks With Dortmund for Striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang
Arsenal seem to be ramping up their efforts to sign Borussia Dortmund's Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang after the Alexis Sánchez–Henrikh Mkhitaryan swap with Manchester United.
According to Goal.com's Chris Wheatley, Gunners chief executive Ivan Gazidis was in Dortmund on Sunday to finalize the deal to bring Aubameyang to north London. Negotiator Huss Fahmy and new head of recruitment Sven Mislintat were present as well.
Dortmund sporting director Michael Zorc had initially denied that Arsenal were pursuing Aubameyang when the rumor first came out, but club CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke has now admitted that they were negotiating with the Gunners.
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"I can confirm that there has been a first request from Arsenal for Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and we are not commenting on the sums that have been called from England since noon today," Watzke said, via Goal.com.
Reports have indicated that Arsenal have lodged an initial bid of €50 million (around £44 million) for the Gabonese striker. However, Dortmund are asking for more with some reports saying they value Aubameyang at €60 million (around £53 million). The Gunners are also expected to include French striker Olivier Giroud as a makeweight in the deal.
That seems like a reasonable price for a proven goal scorer in today's transfer market, and his addition can help Arsenal compensate for the loss of Sánchez to United.
In any case, Dortmund manager Peter Stöger has urged both clubs to speed up negotiations so they can complete the deal sooner rather than later because they only have a week to go before the transfer window closes.
"We would like the solution to be there tomorrow, whatever it looks like," Stöger said, as reported by The Sun.
"I probably would speak from the souls of many people, causes everything that has been clarified and brings clarity, is good for everyone in their life and would also be good for us as a team," he continued.
