Arsenal have opened negotiations with Barcelona over the potential signing of Brazilian forward Malcolm, according to reports in the Mirror.
The winger was signed by the Spanish club for £37m last summer and the North London club would like to take him on a season-long loan. Spanish outlet Sport claim that the Gunners are looking to get a deal with an option to buy Malcolm at the end of this proposed loan.
Malcolm who is 22 years old, has not yet fully established himself in the Barca team and as a result of that, is seeking opportunities elsewhere. He has also been linked with PSG of France but it seems the Gunners have made the first move.
Manager Unai Emery believes that the player represents true value for money as is pushing for a deal to be completed. Since the Gunners failed to qualify for the Champions League, the funds they have to spend in the transfer window are quite limited.
But it is unsure at the moment whether Barca would be asking for a transfer fee or a portion of his wages to be paid. Malcolm signed with the Spanish giants last season but made only 15 appearances with many of them coming off the bench.
A big reason for this was the presence of players such as Messi, Coutinho and even Ousmane Dembele. If he were to come to the Emirates, the suggestions are that he will get a lot more playing time.
Arsenal do not really have any players that can be considered to be out and out wingers and that has hampered them quite a bit. With the addition of a player such as Malcolm, it will really transform the way the Gunners’ attack functions.
His pace and skill on the wings will be a huge boost to the club and he can potentially form a deadly combination with Hector Bellerin on the right-hand side. And also, having a winger such as this is sure to increase the number of chances that a striker such as Aubameyang will have.
It will be interesting to see how the Gunners can negotiate a deal with Barca for Malcolm but if they can pull it off, it would be quite a coup for the club.
