Antoine Semenyo has decided he wants to join Manchester City in January, with Arsenal the only big-six club not to make a move for the Bournemouth player.
The race to sign Antoine Semenyo in January has been stepping up this week, with Manchester City, Manchester United, Liverpool, Chelsea, and Tottenham Hotspur all interested in the Bournemouth winger and his £65m release clause.
David Ornstein reported over the weekend that Arsenal might have looked at the situation too, but only for a summer move. With Semenyo unwilling to wait, that effectively meant they were never in the race ahead of the January window.
Spurs were then the first of the five interested clubs to drop out, with Ornstein reporting that whilst the club were were very keen and willing to pay significant wages, the player politely turned them down.
Chelsea were next to go, making an initial enquiry to establish the conditions of the deal but deciding not to take the situation further.
That left Semenyo with a choice between City, United, and Liverpool, and Ornstein broke the news for The Athletic on Tuesday that the winger’s preference is to join Pep Guardiola’s side.
Nothing has been formally agreed yet, with the January transfer window still not open. But the player wants to win trophies, and he believes his best shot is with City.
Arsenal fans will be keeping an eye on the situation for a couple of reasons, primarily that the Gunners are due to play away to Bournemouth on January 3rd. If Semenyo joins City before that, he’ll be unavailable for the game, as well as for the reverse fixture at the Emirates Stadium.
On the other hand, he’d definitely then be available to face Arsenal with City in April, as well as helping Guardiola’s side with the rest of their title challenge.
In all, it probably would have been better for the Gunners’ title chances if the winger had joined Liverpool or Manchester United. But he’s seemingly made his decision now.