According to BBC’s sports broadcaster Pat Murphy English club, West Bromwich Albion have reportedly told their senior defender Jonny Evans that he will not be leaving the club this summer.
The 28-year-old Northern Ireland international has been linked with a move to Arsenal but there has been no official bid from the North London club and reports of West Brom demanding £25m for Jonny Evans have further ridiculed Arsenal’s reported interest in signing him.
The Telegraph meanwhile say that West Brom value Evans at a staggering £30million. Evans moved to the Hawthorns from Manchester United last year for a fee of just £6million. Baggies’ 58-year old boss Tony Pulis is said to be focused on bringing players in before the transfer window closes and isn’t keen to see one of his first-team stars leave imminently.
Arsenal is in dire need of defensive reinforcements, with two regular first team center-backs Gabriel Paulista and Per Mertesacker currently injured and Laurent Koscielny had just started training and featured in Saturday’s 0-0 draw against defending Premier League champions Leicester City following a final loss in last month’s Euro 2016 with the France national football team.
Arsenal has left it really late in the transfer window as they seek to bolster their squad and as such are finding it difficult to get the crucial deals for a center-back and a striker done before the transfer window officially closes in just 9 days.
Initially Gunners’ boss Arsene Wenger had seen the 28-year old defender as a backup option if his attempts to sign Valencia’s German defender Shkodran Mustafi fails. Germany defender Mustafi is keen to leave Spain for London and has agreed to personal terms with Arsenal, but Valencia is adamant they will not let him go for anything less than his £42m release clause.
That stance saw Wenger shift his attention mainly towards Evans, who played for West Brom at left back and midfield also last season, though his favored role is central defense.
After two games into the season, Arsenal has picked up only one point while their rivals Chelsea, Manchester United, and Manchester City have 6 points each, Tottenham Hotspur has picked up 4 points and Liverpool has 3 points.
With the 2016 summer transfer window heading to a climax Wenger would have to double up on his work routine in order to secure the necessary deals which would propel us to the long-awaited Premier League title.
