There are still no concrete bids from Arsenal for Houssem Aouar, with suggestions the club are playing the waiting game to bring down the price.

Le Progres (via GFFN) report that there are still no concrete bids for Houssem Aouar. They suggest that Lyon know that the longer they wait, the less they’re likely to receive, with Arsenal also evidently aware of this fact.

If Arsenal make a bid now, Lyon can hold out for similar offers and force the Gunners to increase their offer to get it over the line. If they bid much later in the window, all Lyon can do is reject or accept. They won’t have time to use the bid as leverage.

Obviously, that means running the risk that Arsenal won’t have time to agree a deal. It also means playing the next few games without the player Mikel Arteta clearly wants. But with all the financial restrictions right now, they may have to take that risk.

The club also might not have much choice. Reliable reports from the likes of David Ornstein have consistently informed us that Arsenal need to sell to buy the player.

We don’t even need inside information to know that, with Arsenal’s first team squad currently two players larger than the non-homegrown quota. So they must sell or loan three players to bring Aouar in, or risk paying a player’s wages to sit at home all season.

None of this means the move won’t happen. It’s just a matter of patience while Arsenal push to get four separate transfers in and out, in a difficult market.