Arsenal Transfer Rumors: Riyad Mahrez Considering Joining Arsenal
About a month ago, Riyad Mahrez broke the hearts of Leicester City fans when he announced that he wants to move on this summer.
A number of clubs in the Premier League have been keeping an eye of him when he became available, and Barcelona were reportedly interested as well.
Mahrez prefers to join the Catalan giants, but after weeks of waiting, the Algerian footballer may be ready to give up on his dream move.
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According to Sport, Mahrez has grown tired of waiting for Barcelona to make a move and he's now considering the Gunners' offer.
"Riyad Mahrez has decided to give up waiting for Barcelona. The attacker wanted to move from Leicester to Camp Nou but Barcelona have other priorities in the market. In the end his signing would only be possible if Verratti does not sign for Barcelona and the club still have hopes of that. So Mahrez will look instead to Arsenal where he is considering the four year deal they are presenting," Lluís Miguelsanz wrote in his report for Sport.
Algerian outlet Le Buteur also claims that Mahrez wants to join the Gunners because they have a lot of French-speaking players on the squad. And he will get the chance to work with Arsène Wenger as well.
Mahrez has been on Arsenal's radar since he helped Leicester City win their first Premier League title in the 2015–16. Many observers thought he was going to leave the club last summer, but he decided to stay with the Foxes instead.
Interestingly, Mahrez has previously mentioned that he wants to play against the best clubs in the Champions League, but Arsenal failed to qualify for the tournament this season since they finished outside the top four. That means the 2015–16 Professional Footballers Association (PFA) player of the year will have to settle for Europa League football if he joins them this summer.
Well, the Gunners can always get back to the Champions League if they play well next season, and they will get a much-needed boost if they sign Mahrez.
