Arsenal will not sign Leroy Sane this summer, with Galatasaray swooping in to secure the coveted winger's signature. The Gunners had shown interest in Sane, whose contract at Bayern Munich is set to expire in the coming weeks, making him a hot property in the summer transfer window.
The saga of Sane's contract has been a recurring theme at Bayern this year, with constant speculation about his future. The German giants were hopeful of retaining the winger beyond his contract's end on June 30, but those hopes have now been dashed.
The 29-year-old will now skip the Club World Cup, commencing in the United States this weekend, to finalise a move elsewhere. Despite interest from Premier League clubs, Napoli, Saudi outfit Al-Hilal and Fenerbahce, it's Galatasaray who have emerged victorious in the race for the German international.
According to L’Équipe, Arsenal have withdrawn from the race after Sane's agents travelled to Istanbul to negotiate a deal. Sky Sports Germany reports that he has verbally agreed to join the Turkish side as a free agent once his Bayern contract ends.
Sane is set to sign a three-year contract with Galatasaray worth €15million (£12.72million) per year, equating to roughly £475,000-a-week, as reported by The Athletic. This represents a significant coup for the club, who clinched the domestic double last season by winning the Turkish Super Lig and Turkish Cup, reports the Mirror.
Victor Osimhen's time at Galatasaray is set to come to an end as his loan from Napoli expires, leaving Sane poised to be the Turkish club's marquee player. With Osimhen attracting attention from Premier League clubs after a successful spell, Arsenal face disappointment in their pursuit of Sane, whom they viewed as a cost-effective winger option compared to Athletic Bilbao's Nico Williams.
Sane has previously lauded Mikel Arteta for his impact during their time together at Manchester City. "I can just say positive things about Mikel Arteta. Since we started working together, he has helped me a lot on the pitch," he told The Independent.
"He tried to improve my football, he told me what I did good and what I did wrong, and he tried to work on it. Next to Pep, they both really helped me and improved me, to bring me to the next level.
"Even now, at Arsenal, for me, you can see he's doing a great job. You can see he has a concept, a way that he wants to play, a way that he wants his team to play, and obviously, it will take some time until everybody really understands it. I think he will do a great job as a [head] coach too."