Arsenal are considering a swap deal with Atletico Madrid to sign Kieran Trippier which could see Hector Bellerin moving in the opposite direction, as per reports in Marca.
The 30-year-old was initially signed by Tottenham in 2015 from Burnley. The fullback did not manage to start regularly for Spurs until 2017 when Kyle Walker left for Manchester City. He took this chance and racked up 114 appearances for the club in the next two seasons.
The Englishman’s brilliant performances led to his move to the Spanish Capital in 2019. Since he arrived at the Wanda Metropolitano, he has been Diego Simeone’s go-to man at right-back, making 68 appearances since joining the newly crowned La Liga winners.
According to Marca, Trippier could play at the Emirates next season. The report states that Arsenal are considering a swap deal which could see Bellerin returning to Spain.
The report adds that Atletico’s sporting director, Andrea Berta, is an admirer of Hector Bellerin. The long-serving Spaniard had cemented his position on the right flank for several years at the North London club. However, a cruciate ligament rupture against Chelsea in January 2019 sidelined the fullback for more than a year.
Marca further claim that the Emirates club have to rival Manchester United to secure Trippier’s signature as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer seeks to provide competition for current right-back Aaron Wan-Bissaka. It is believed that Trippier’s preference would be to return to the northwest should he leave Spain, casting a major doubt over his potential move to London.
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Since Bellerin’s return to the squad, he has not quite managed to regain his speed and certainly has lost his trademark overlapping runs. The Gunners are likely to offload the 26-year-old this summer and this swap deal would make perfect sense.
The north Londoners are rumored to be planning a major squad overhaul this summer and Mikel Arteta will look to bolster the right-back position. Bellerin has been linked with a host of clubs and it is safe to assume that the Spanish fullback’s time at the Emirates has come to an end.
Trippier had a scintillating season in Spain guiding the Colchoneros to their first league triumph since 2014 and was also named in La Liga’s team of the season but the former Tottenham player is in the late stages of his career.
While he would represent a perfect short-term solution for the Gunners, the defender would not be an ideal candidate for the job in the long run. Ideally, it would better for the Emirates club to cash in on Bellerin and use the funds to bring in a young right-back who could cement the fullback slot for years to come.
