Denis Suárez has completed his loan move from Barcelona to Arsenal for the remainder of the season, the Catalan club have confirmed. Arsenal, who will take on the 25-year-old midfielder’s salary in full, will have an option to make the deal permanent in the summer, although that is non-compulsory.
Barcelona have protected the value of their player by extending his contract by 12 months until June 2021 so that, if he was to return to them at the end of the season, he would not then enter the final year on his deal.
Unai Emery, the Arsenal manager, who worked with Suárez at Sevilla in 2014-15, has said that he wants fresh options on the wing. He believes that Suárez can give him that, even if his lack of pace means that he is perhaps not a pure winger. Suárez is a highly technical player, who has good touch and positional sense.
Suárez spent two seasons at Manchester City from the age of 17, when he made two appearances in the league cup. He has barely featured for Barcelona this season, making just eight appearances – two of them as a starter in the Copa Del Rey.
Arsenal are also interested in a loan for the Belgium winger, Yannick Carrasco, who is at Dalian Yifang in China. They had explored the possibility of taking Ivan Perisic on loan from Inter Milan only to be rebuffed and Carrasco, previously of Monaco and Atletico Madrid, was next on their list. Carrasco would be open to a move from China but Arsenal face competition from clubs in Italy, chief among them Milan.
Everton are attempting to sign Michy Batshuayi on a permanent deal from Chelsea, with the Belgium striker expected to cost around £35 million (€40 million).
Batshuayi spent the first half of this season on loan at Valencia but has not made an appearance at the beginning of the month as the Spanish side attempt to cut short his spell. Despite interest from West Ham in taking him on loan, Chelsea have been searching for a permanent option for the 25-year-old and have held talks with Everton over a potential move, with the Londoners demanding more than the £33 million they paid to sign him from Marseille in 2016.
Batshuayi still has more than two years remaining on his contract at Stamford Bridge, but having already signed Kurt Zouma on loan from Chelsea, Marco Silva’s side are only able to pursue a permanent deal but are confident an agreement can be reached before Thursday’s deadline.
Meanwhile, Leicester are primed to announce the loan signing of the Belgium midfielder, Youri Tielemans, from Monaco, with Adrien Silva, the Portugal midfielder, going in the opposite direction, also on loan under the end of the season. Neither deal has the option for a permanent transfer. – Guardian
