Yaya Toure’s agent says his client would willingly join any of the top six English clubs, other than Manchester City, for a salary of just £1-a-week.
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Speaking to Russian outlet Sport24, Toure’s agent insisted his client isn’t done with Premier League football just yet, despite being released by Manchester City this summer.
“Yaya has many offers from different countries, where they are ready to pay a lot of money,” the agent explained. “But we decided to dedicate the next season to Guardiola. And to prove and show the fans of Manchester City that Yaya has not finished with football. He is full of energy and wants to play this season in England.”
“At a time when huge sums are being spent in England for the purchase of football players, I officially declare that Yaya is ready to move as a free agent to any English club of the top six with a salary of 1 pound a week. But with a bonus system based on certain successes.
“I believe that a player like Yaya would not harm Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester United, Tottenham and Liverpool. Yaya – the winner. And never before has a top footballer with leadership qualities harmed any club, especially when it is not necessary to pay for it.”
In fairness to Yaya, he didn’t get much of a chance to prove himself this season in England. He only managed 10 Premier League appearances all campaign, and just one start. He clearly still has a lot of confidence in his abilities, and wants to prove that Manchester City were wrong to let him go.
It could well be a move Arsenal are interested in. After all, the club do seem to be on the hunt for a tall, physical midfielder. Previously, it seemed like Toure’s wage demands would get in the way of a potential move, but if he’s willing to lower them to get another chance in a top Premier League club, perhaps he could be worth a shot.
We’ll see if Unai Emery and his transfer team have any interest in the player in the coming weeks.
Click ‘Next’ to see 6 more midfielders linked with a move to Arsenal this summer.
Adrien Rabiot
- Age: 23
- Current club: Paris Saint-Germain
- Contract until: 2019
- Market value: £45m
Rabiot blends physicality with technical ability, and is a long-term target of Arsene Wenger. Last year he told reporters he was going to talk about extending his contract in the summer, but a year later they still haven’t made any progress.
Since that’s still the case now, with the window open and only a year left on his deal, Arsenal should make a move. It’s unlikely they’ll be able to match PSG’s wage offer, but it’s worth a shot anyway.
Unai Emery’s appointment in North London could definitely help, given the massive progress Rabiot made under the manager.
The midfielder is still young, but he already has a lot of experience under his belt. Plus he ticks all the boxes for what Arsenal need in the centre.
He has a physical presence, he doesn’t struggle to play out under pressure, he contributes defensively and gets involved in the goals from time to time as well.
For a more detailed report on Rabiot and what he could offer Arsenal, check out this article.
Jean-Michael Seri
- Age: 26
- Current club: OGC Nice
- Contract until: 2019
- Market value: £27m
Arsenal have reportedly held talks with Jean-Michel Seri’s representatives as they look to revive a move they tried to make happen last summer.
According to Sky Sports, Arsenal got in touch with Seri’s camp to get discussions started.
This comes just a few days after it was reported that Raul Sanllehi’s involvement could help seal the deal given that he almost landed Seri for Barcelona.
Arsenal’s new director of football reportedly formed a close relationship with the Ivorian last year when he tried to sign him for the Catalans.
That deal didn’t come off, something that Seri reportedly still finds painful, but this summer he is definitely on the move.
Nice are ready to let him, Mario Balotelli, and Alassane Plea leave, with L’Equipe reporting that Arsenal are still interested in Seri who is out of contract next summer.
In their Monday edition, they wrote, “Seri, who focuses interests in the Premier League: Manchester City have added Chelsea – where Roman Abramovich likes him – as well as Arsenal. Raul Sanllehi, director of sports affairs at the London club after having worked for Barça for a long time, has indeed had good relations with the Ivorian midfielder since the player nearly rallied the Catalan giant last summer. The failure of this transfer remains painful for Seri.”
Over the summer, Seri was the only player who came close to Monaco’s Thomas Lemar in terms of Arsenal media speculation.
Arsenal are said to be in the market for a midfielder but Seri’s £36m release fee apparently doesn’t exist so it’s not clear how much he would cost.
Danilo Pereira
- Age: 26
- Current club: FC Porto
- Contract until: 2022
- Market value: £21.6m
We already know from the Portuguese media’s regular reports that Arsenal have spent a lot of time watching Porto play lately. For the most part, they seem to agree that Danilo is one of the key targets of their scouting trips.
The Portugal international is having a fantastic season with Porto, so you can see why he’s drawing interest from top clubs.
Danilo’s main strength is his aerial ability. He stands at around 6’2″, and uses every inch to his advantage. As a result, he’s won 70.1% of his aerial duels this season.
He’s also very comfortable on the ball, completing 86.3% of his passes for Porto. Those are two attributes the Gunners could use in a defensive midfielder.
The only drawback at the moment is that he’s struggling with a couple of injuries. In January he suffered a calf strain, then in February he had a setback keeping him out until April. Unfortunately he then ruptured his Achilles tendon.
If he can get fit and stay fit, Arsenal’s scouts have seen enough of him by now to know whether he’s worth a bid this summer.
Mario Lemina
- Age: 24
- Current club: Southampton
- Contract until: 2022
- Market value: £13.5m
Arsenal followed Lemina before his move to Southampton last summer, and the midfielder said at the time that he was “flattered” by their interest. According to L’Equipe, the club still haven’t “dropped the case”.
The 24-year-old excels at tackling and winning aerial duels. He’s also strong in possession, with 88% pass accuracy for the season (89.8% last season), and he isn’t easy to knock off the ball.
Plus, he has the advantage of having played in the Premier League for a year, so he’ll need less time to adapt.
Southampton didn’t end up getting relegated, so that could be a hit to Arsenal’s chances of signing Lemina. However, the fact they came so close might still edge him towards the door.
Steven N’Zonzi
- Age: 29
- Current club: Sevilla
- Contract until: 2020
- Market value: £27m
Earlier this year, N’Zonzi showed just what he’s capable of against English opposition, as he walked all over Manchester United’s midfield in a 2-1 win for Sevilla.
His passing was inch-perfect, as it so often is, and he has a major physical presence as well.
In January, reports suggested the 6’5″ defensive midfielder was Wenger’s number one target. Clearly this turned out not to be the case, but it still implies Arsenal were somewhat interested. Perhaps they might be even more so now that N’Zonzi’s former manager Unai Emery is head coach at the club.
N’Zonzi also seemed fairly keen on a transfer throughout 2017. He asked to leave in the summer, then spent time away from the squad after a rift with the manager.
He ended up focusing on his football again, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see the rumours return in this summer window.
Idrissa Gueye
- Age: 28
- Current club: Everton
- Contract until: 2022
- Market value: £18m
Like Lemina and N’Zonzi, Gueye also has the advantage of Premier League experience. The Senegal international joined Everton in 2016, and played for Aston Villa before that so he’s spent a while in England now.
Gueye’s game is very much focused around defensive contributions.
His passing stats and goal contributions are relatively average, but he holds onto the ball very well, and consistently puts up high numbers in terms of tackling and interceptions. Plus he rarely loses focus in his defensive duties.
If Arsenal want to sign someone who is less of an all-rounder and more of a defensive midfield specialist, Gueye could be the right player to go for.
Then again, limited technical ability on the ball is why Francis Coquelin ended up leaving. So I’m not entirely sure that’s what they’re after.