Arsenal to spend £30m on centre-back and goalkeeper this summer
Sources in North London have suggested that Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger will use up to £30m of his transfer kitty in “steadying things at the back” by making bids for Gary Cahill of Bolton Wanderers and Maarten Stekelenburg of Ajax.
It has been no secret that Arsenal lack a top class goalkeeper despite the progress made by 22 year old Szczesny this season and a call for another centre-back has been repeated numerous times this season, especially with the injury to Belgian international Thomas Vermaelen.
With Ajax prepared to allow Stekelenburg to leave with just one more year remaining on his current contract and Owen Coyle very much facing the fact that Cahill will move on, both of these top players could be purchased using £30m and would probably leave Wenger with some small change should negotiations go well.
Cahill is valued around £15m and would fit in next to Vermaelen comfortably, possibly forging one of their best centre-back pairings since Tony Adams and Martin Keown held the fort. With a further £12m reportedly wanted by Ajax for Stekelenburg a solid defensive triangle for Arsenal could well be on the cards but should Wenger try to undervalue the players he may well miss out again, forcing the 61 year old to yet again “look elsewhere”.
