ARSENAL CREDIT CRUNCH
As Emery admits he can only sign players on loan, it’s the...
ARSENAL’S precarious financial situation was exposed yesterday as it emerged that they can only make loan signings this month.
The London club are traditionally seen as one of English football’s superpowers, but manager Unai Emery revealed: ‘We cannot sign permanently. We can only loan players.’
The situation places further scrutiny on the state of the club’s finances under owner Stan Kroenke.
Arsenal are ranked sixth in the Deloitte money league in terms of revenue. But their huge wage bill is having a significant impact on what money is available. Mesut Ozil’s mammoth £350,000-a-week deal is a hefty strain on finances, particularly given that he is no longer an automatic starter.
The arrivals of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang — who earns close to £200,000 a week — and Henrikh Mkhitaryan last January have pushed the wage budget to breaking point.
Arsenal also spent close to £200million on transfer fees during the previous three windows, contributing to Emery’s hands being tied this month. Funds are likely to be released for the summer, but how much will depend on whether the Gunners can qualify for the Champions League.
Barcelona midfielder Denis Suarez is a target, but the Spanish club would rather sell him permanently this month.
Arsenal are exploring the possibility of taking Suarez on loan with an option to sign him permanently in the summer. Emery said: ‘I don’t know his situation but we can only sign on loan and I know the club is working on which players can help us.’
The manager also appeared to confirm his long-standing interest in Sevilla midfielder Ever Banega.
Sportsmail revealed Arsenal’s interest in the Argentinian player in October. When asked about Banega, Emery said: ‘I know this player and he is very good.’
The imminent departure of Aaron Ramsey to Juventus will help to ease the strain on Arsenal’s wage bill. The Wales international is ready to sign a pre-contract with the Turin club — but he was yesterday still waiting for permission to fly to Italy to complete a medical ahead of signing.
The constraints on Emery are hardly ideal, given Arsenal’s battle to break into the Premier League top four following two seasons without Champions League football, a failure that has undoubtedly impacted on the club’s spending power.
But the Gunners boss is adamant that even if his side fail to add to their squad this month, he is happy with his options.
‘We are working with the players who are with us now,’ said Emery. ‘We are giving chances to the young players and finding that they have the ability to be consistent when we need them to be.
‘I am very happy, I know it is not easy for us now in this market but if we can find one player who can help us with the quality, a different player to add to our squad, we are going to do it.’