Arsène Wenger is increasingly confident of completing what stands to be an Arsenal record transfer for the striker Alexandre Lacazette after productive talks with Lyon.
The manager is keen to strengthen in attacking areas, particularly as he fights to keep hold of Alexis Sánchez, who is wanted by Manchester City, among other clubs, and he has seen a €35m (£30.7m) bid turned down by Monaco for the left winger Thomas Lemar. Monaco are adamant Lemar will not be sold.
But Arsenal are making progress on their move for Lacazette, whom Jean-Michel Aulas, the Lyon president, has said is worth €65m. Aulas has told Arsenal they must “be in those waters” as Atlético Madrid were ready to pay that before they were banned from registering players until January 2018.
Arsenal value Lacazette at €50m, which they have indicated they are willing to pay, but they are prepared to go higher, most likely with performance-related add-ons, to close the deal. They are hopeful that Aulas will compromise slightly. Lacazette, 26, whom Wenger has tried to sign in the past, has 11 France caps and is under contract to 2019. Arsenal’s transfer record is the £42.5m paid to Real Madrid for Mesut Özil in 2013.
Sánchez has made up his mind about where he will play next season but the striker would not say whether it would still be at Arsenal. Sánchez has one year to run on his contract and has given no indication he is ready to sign another one, despite the club’s desperation to tie him down.
Manchester City are confident of signing the 28-year-old for around £50m. They believe they have the means to beat Arsenal in terms of a salary package.
Sánchez is playing in the Confederations Cup in Russia where Chile will play Germany in the final on Sunday. He was presented for interview on Friday alongside his international team-mate Claudio Bravo, who plays at City.
Sánchez was asked whether he would be a club-mate of Bravo’s next season. “Good question,” he replied. “Right now, I am focused on the Confederations Cup. When this is finished, I will see if I stay or if I go. I don’t know.” He added: “It’s clear [in my mind] but I can’t tell you anything.”
Sánchez was later asked by Sky Sports about the chances of him staying at Arsenal. “I don’t know, my friend. I don’t know,” he said.
The nightmare for Arsenal would be to lose Sánchez, their leading scorer and undoubted star, to a Premier League rival but the City manager, Pep Guardiola, has some pull in this case. He brought Sánchez from Udinese to Barcelona in the summer of 2011 and worked with him there for one season.