Arsenal are seriously interested in signing Leroy Sane as a free agent this summer, but there’s still a very good chance he remains at Bayern Munich.
Florian Plettenberg of Sky Sport Germany reports that Arsenal are seriously interested in signing Leroy Sane as a free agent, and concrete talks have already taken place over a potential move.
On top of that, there are still internal sceptics at Bayern Munich about handing the player a new contract, with his current deal expiring this summer.
Yet a Bayern extension is far from ruled out. The player’s performances are increasingly being recognised at Bayern, and the winger wants to stay. Director of sport Max Eberl is continuing contract negotiations, and Sane is willing to accept a pay cut.
A decision is expected within the next 1-3 weeks, according to Plettenberg’s report.
Bild reporters Christian Falk and Tobi Altschaffl also recently confirmed that Arsenal are interested in Sane, with the player not having held any talks with Bayern at the time.
Falk had previously written in November that Mikel Arteta was very keen on a move for the winger.
The Arsenal boss even reportedly wanted to sign Sane in 2023, but at the time, there was no chance of the move going ahead. Now that Sane is approaching free agency, the situation is very different.
Sane’s family were reportedly unhappy during his spell in Manchester with Manchester City, and they considered moving to London even before his Bayern transfer came about.
But after the recent claims of Arsenal interest in Joshua Kimmich, only for Kimmich to extend his contract with Bayern, fans should take these updates with a grain of salt.
It seems the playbook is for ‘leaks’ of Arsenal interest to appear in the media, only for an agreement to be reached soon afterwards. Plettenberg doesn’t deny that Sane’s preference is to stay where he is, so that’s still the most likely outcome.
After his brace at the weekend, Sane has 11 goals and four assists for Bayern this season, despite only playing 1,827 minutes in all competitions.
Saturday was the 29-year-old’s 13th Bundesliga start in 27 games this season. He’s started four of Bayern’s 12 Champions League matches and one of their three cup games, so he’s making the lineup less than half the time in every case.