Bologna have reportedly been left with a ‘bitter taste’ with how Arsenal went about signing their defender, Takehiro Tomiyasu.

Arsenal had been hoping they could swap Hector Bellerin in part for Emerson Royal but Spurs offered more money for him. Ronald Koeman also reportedly had some reservations about Hector Bellerin, so he ended up at Real Betis and Arsenal went for Tomiyasu on deadline day.

TuttoBolognaWeb, via Sport Witness, however, claim that the transfer ‘leaves a bitter taste in the mouth’ of the Italian club due to how late Arsenal moved for the player. Arsenal went in with a big offer on deadline day, one that Bologna couldn’t refuse, but the lateness of the offer meant they had no time to find a replacement of their own.

Manager Sinisa Mihajlovic said, “I was satisfied with my Bologna until yesterday (laughs). Now a little bit less, but the sale of Tomiyasu was right, it was planned. Of course, when it happens five or six hours from the end of the market, it bothers you a bit. I don’t know if we will be stronger than last year, we will see at the end of the season”.

It was unlikely to have been deliberate on Arsenal’s part, I really do think they had other preferred options as stated above.

It’s unfortunate this is how it played out for Bologna, but I certainly don’t think it was done in the same style as say Manchester City’s very late move for Alexis Sanchez, designed to unsettle him.