Arsenal blow: Denis Suarez to remain at Barcelona

Posted Wednesday, January 23, 2019 by 101 GREAT GOALS

As per a report from Edu Polo of Mundo Deportivo, Arsenal are set to miss out on the signature of Barcelona midfielder Denis Suarez.

Barcelona outcast

S''uarez, a versatile 25-year-old who can play either in an attacking-midfield role or on the wing, has been on Barca's books since 2016, when he made the move to the Camp Nou from Villarreal.

However, despite having arrived in Catalunya with weighty expectations on his young shoulders, Suarez's Blaugrana stint has, to this point, proved rather disappointing.

After racking up a respectable 26 La Liga appearances (12 starts) during his debut campaign at the Camp Nou, Suarez saw a considerable drop-off in playing time last season, with Ernesto Valverde having afforded the Spanish midfielder just 4 league starts.

Denis Suarez celebrates during the Copa del Rey quarter-final second-leg match between FC Barcelona and Real Sociedad

And the current campaign has since proven an even more frustrating affair for Suarez. Between La Liga and the Champions League, the former Manchester City youth has seen a paltry 41 minutes of time on the pitch.

Arsenal & Chelsea links

As such, Suarez has long been tipped to depart Barcelona before the end of the month.

To this point, all of Arsenal, Chelsea and AC Milan have been persistently-linked with a swoop for the once-capped international.

Arsenal, though, have emerged as clear favourites to actually seal a deal for Suarez over the last couple of weeks, with Unai Emery keen to reunite with his former Sevilla charge.

In fact, the Mirror reported earlier today that the Gunners were hopeful of sealing the Spaniard's arrival by this weekend:

#AFC hope to sign Denis Suarez by this weekend [via @MirrorDarren]
— Arsènic™ (@MrArsenicTM) January 22, 2019

Suarez staying put

But, in a huge twist this evening, it is now being claimed that the deal to take Suarez to the Emirates has definitively collapsed.

According to the reliable Edu Polo of Mundo Deportivo, negotiations between Arsenal and Barcelona have completely broken down.

As such, Suarez is said to have informed Barca boss Ernesto Valverde that he will not be departing the club this month:

Cuando parecía que la salida de Denis Suárez estaba hecha, incluso admitida por Valverde, se rompen las negociaciones entre Barça y Arsenal. El jugador ya le ha comunicado al técnico que se queda https://t.co/dZJ2AjbGl5
— Edu Polo (@EduPolo) January 22, 2019

Negotiations between Arsenal and Barcelona over Denis Suárez’s move to Arsenal have broken down. [Mundo Deportivo] pic.twitter.com/ocmNj09ZZ7
— AFTV (@AFTVMedia) January 22, 2019