Dusan Vlahovic makes u-turn on massive contract offer

Arsenal look like dragging the Dusan Vlahovic saga right up until deadline day with the super Serbian mulling over a huge contract

Posted Friday, January 21, 2022 by fourfourtwo.com

Arsenal are still in for Fiorentina forward Dusan Vlahovic, with the man himself apparently making a u-turn over his stance on the transfer.

Over the course of the last few weeks, Mikel Arteta has ramped up his interest in the 21-year-old striker, with a number of his current options looking frozen from current plans. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is infamously on the naughty step, following the disciplinary issues that led him to lose the captaincy last month.

Alexandre Lacazette has been leading the line admirably both in formation and in leading Arsenal's young guns. Short-term contract extensions have been proposed to the Frenchman, who turned 30 this season, but he would like a longer stay in north London.

All-time England under-21 scorer Eddie Nketiah has impressed in the League Cup but also turned down a contract offer from the Gunners. Another youngster, Flo Balogun, left the club for Middlesbrough on loan this month.

Vlahovic was thought to be unenthused by the prospect of heading to the Emirates Stadium this month, with his options opening up in the summer. The Serbian has just 18 months left on his current deal but wants to wait for a transfer battle between the likes of Juventus, Inter Milan, Manchester City and Bayern Munich to ensue before making a decision on his future.

According to La Repubblica, however, the Gunners might have made the all-important breakthrough.

The north Londoners have apparently agreed terms with his Florence-based employers and are said to be willing to part with a sizeable fee to ensure Vlahovic's agency are satisfied. The striker himself is said to be impressed with the offer of £160,000 a week, which would put him in the upper bracket of earners at London Colney – and is now seriously considering the transfer to Arteta's team.

Currently, Arsenal's highest-paid player remains Aubameyang, who collects something in the region of £250,000 to £300,000.