Racing Santander sporting director Chema Aragon has revealed that Arsenal were close to signing Real Betis winger Pablo Garcia before the transfer deadline.
The 20-year-old spent his entire career with the La Liga outfit, but he was sold to Racing on deadline day after they agreed a £4.7 million deal for 50 percent of his ownership.
In a press conference yesterday (via COPE), Aragon revealed that Arsenal were on the cusp of landing the Betis winger on a permanent deal and Racing planned to negotiate a loan thereafter.
However, things quickly changed on Tuesday. The newly promoted La Liga outfit negotiated a high sell-on clause to secure the Spaniard from Betis, who are back in the Champions League this term.
He said: “It seemed like it was a done deal with Arsenal, and then we were also going to come in on loan, but yesterday things changed.”
Arsenal tried to sign Garcia in a surprise deal
The 20-year-old is primarily a right winger by trade, but he started the season on the left wing and scored a late winner against Valencia as a substitute.
Despite this, Betis sanctioned his sale amid his desire for more playing time. Arsenal recently played a friendly against the Andalusian club, where Garcia impressed on the right flank.
The youngster completed 100 percent of his dribbles (3/3), creating two scoring opportunities. Garcia also missed a big scoring chance, but it appears he caught the eye of the Gunners.
Arsenal may have tried to sign him permanently for a higher fee with a lower sell-on clause, but Racing’s proposal was more lucrative for Betis (50 percent sell-on), since they would receive a huge profit if the Spaniard goes on to secure a bigger move.
In any case, the Gunners had planned to loan him out rather than consider him as a first-team option. Journalist David Soria claims that Getafe would have been the likely destination.
Stats from Transfermarkt.com & Sofascore.com