Arsenal may face further complications in their attempts to sign Valencia defender Cristhian Mosquera, according to reports.
The Gunners have already had an opening bid worth €14m (£12m) turned down for the Spanish international but TBRFootball claims that the centre-back could be ready to make a “u-turn” on leaving Mestalla.
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Mosquera had originally rejected the possibility of signing a new contract at Valencia, but he is coming round to the idea of putting pen to paper on an extension if it includes a release clause of £20m, which can only be activated next year.
Despite this new development, TBRFootball believe that Mikel Arteta’s side are still “lining up another offer” for the 21-year-old.
Mosquera’s valuation is only slightly more than Arsenal’s 1st bid
It is thought that Valencia were amenable to selling the centre-half if the Gunners were prepared to pay €20m (£17m).
That means there is still a chance that Mosquera’s move to the Emirates can be wrapped up as long as the London club are willing to increase their proposal by £5m.
Tomiyasu’s exit prompted the move for another defender
Heading into the summer, adding another centre-back to the squad was not high up the agenda of sporting director Andrea Berta.
However, the decision to terminate the contract of Takehiro Tomiyasu has changed things. The Japanese international was released with a year remaining on his current deal when it became clear that he would miss the first half of next season recovering from knee surgery.
Mosquera was seemingly the player identified as Tomiyasu’s replacement. He has played as a right-back in addition to being deployed in the centre of the defence, and that flexibility is one of the main reasons he has been pursued.
In other news, Alan Shearer believes Arsenal will be “a huge threat” next season if they manage to secure one signing