August 08, (THEWILL) – English Premier League side Newcastle have agreed a fee in the region of £25m with Arsenal for midfielder Joe Willock to move from the Emirates to Saint James’ Park ahead of the upcoming 2021/2022 football season.
Although personal terms between Willock and the management of Newcastle have not been fully finalised, there are negotiations presently underway to push it through in time for Sunday’s opener against West Ham at home.
In anticipation of his move away from north London, Willock was left out of Sunday’s pre-season friendly at Tottenham where Arsenal again could not find a goal. Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta dodged giving anything away when queried about the player, saying: “We will explain the reasons when we can.”
However, the 21-year-old Englishman was considered a high priority and Newcastle’s number-one target all window after his successful loan spell in the second half of last season at the club.
Besides finding the net 14 times, Willock set a new record by becoming the youngest player to score in seven consecutive games to make him overly desirable for Newcastle. Steve Bruce, the Newcastle manager did not hide their admiration of the Arsenal player.
Bruce’s personal desire to bring Willock in on a permanent basis was clearly illustrated by how he described the persistence they were prepared to exercise on Arsenal last month when he said they would “keep badgering away” at the Emirates until they got their man.
With the £25m fee agreed, their persistence has apparently paid off and that cash injection could be advantageous for Arsenal’s attempts to prise their own target, Leicester’s James Maddison from the grip of the Foxes. The Gunners are helped by the fact that Maddison is open to the idea.
Although Leicester finished above Arsenal in the last two Premier League seasons, Maddison’s positive outlook to get into Mikel Arteta’s squad is a promising note in the transfer business though the asking price for his services remained a challenge for the Gunners after shelling out £50m to Brighton and Hove Albion for Ben White.
Arsenal’s Technical Director, Eduardo Cesar Daud Gaspar, popularly called “Edu” is however said to be exploring alternative ways of structuring the deal, with a cash-plus-players offer a possibility if there are available Arsenal players that interest Leicester.
Money from the Willock transfer can bring some extra bargaining power to Arsenal, making the Maddison move a lot more possible now than before.
However, Arteta will have more headaches in attack now that ever before as his trusted forwards of Pierre Emerick-Aubameyang, Alexandre Lacazette and Nicholas Pepe are still shooting blanks, have not clicked into that high gear in finding the net and are not giving defenders any jitters.
In a testy pre-season encounter, a north London derby of sorts against Tottenham Hotspur, a Harry Kane-absent Spurs side peppered the Arsenal goal area repeatedly with the Gunners’ strike force unable to replicate that at the Spurs’ post. The lack of goals ruined opportunities last season and it has not been improved upon as the new season arrives.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
