Roberto De Zerbi has claimed Ethan Nwaneri could make his Marseille debut as soon as tomorrow, even though the deal hasn’t been officially confirmed yet.
Olympique de Marseille hope to have two new signings in their squad for this weekend’s match against Ligue 1 leaders Lens, with Quinten Timber (twin brother of Arsenal’s Jurrien) joining on a permanent transfer and Ethan Nwaneri signing on loan from Arsenal.
Before either deal was announced, Roberto De Zerbi spoke to the media and confirmed they could both join in time to make their debuts on Saturday.
“I’m absolutely delighted they’ve signed for OM; they could even play as soon as Saturday,” De Zerbi said. “They’re two quality players, with experience for Timber and talent for Nwaneri.”
Quinten Timber’s transfer to Marseille has now been officially confirmed by the club, so it’s presumably just a matter of time until Nwaneri’s deal is announced as well.
Ryan Taylor reports for Football.London that Marseille will pay a guaranteed fee of €1.5m for Nwaneri’s loan, but the fee could rise as high as €4m.
That will depend on the 18-year-old’s appearance total. If he plays a lot, the fee will be less, but if he’s never selected then the fee could hit that €4m maximum.
Arsenal did the same thing with Fabio Vieira’s loan to FC Porto last season, and it seemed to work well as an incentive, with the 25-year-old playing 42 times.
Nwaneri arrived in Marseille earlier this week, and he spoke briefly to the media to explain his transfer, saying: “[Marseille] is one of the best clubs in the world, with great fans.
“William Saliba told me that it is one of the best clubs in the world […] Roberto De Zerbi is one of the best managers in the world.”