Arsenal transfer news: Arsene Wenger ready to fight with Spurs over Southampton midfielder Morgan Schneiderlin Arsène Wenger considers summer bid for Southampton midfielder Morgan Schneiderlin . BY JEREMY WILSON, THE DAILY TELEGRAPH. Arsenal are preparing to go head to head with Tottenham Hotspur this summer for Morgan Schneiderlin after identifying the France and Southampton midfielder as one of their transfer priorities for 2015. There is an acceptance that it would be virtually impossible to prise Schneiderlin away from St Mary’s this month, particularly as Southampton are pushing for a European place, but the 25-year-old has admitted that his future is unsure beyond the season. Southampton turned down a £10 million bid from Tottenham last summer and, although the player initially wanted to leave, club directors decided that they would refuse all offers. Spurs, though, never actually improved on a single £10 million bid which Schneiderlin had wrongly thought would trigger a release clause. Relations between Tottenham and Southampton had also become strained earlier in the summer by the departure of Mauricio Pochettino and his coaching staff. Arsenal did buy Calum Chambers from Southampton for £16 million but made no enquiry for Schneiderlin, who is valued at closer to £20 million. Arsenal have since been lacking this season in central midfield, largely due to injury, and long-term replacements are especially needed in the holding midfield role. Mikel Arteta has sustained several injuries this season but has provisionally agreed a one-year extension to stay at Arsenal next season but Mathieu Flamini is out of contract this summer. Schneiderlin should now be coming into the peak years of his career and, looking further into the future, Arsenal are also seeking to sign Legia Warsaw’s Krystian Bielik this month. They have had a £2 million bid turned down but talks remain ongoing between the clubs for a player who only turned 17 on Sunday but has already broken into the Legia Warsaw first team. Legia bought Bielik from Lech Poznan for £9,500 last year and he has a contract until 2017. At 6ft 2in, Bielik is a strong physical presence and is expected to develop as a specialist in the holding midfield position. Wenger is also interested in adding defensive cover this month. Goalkeeper Wojceich Szczesny, though, will not be dropped against Stoke City on Sunday as a consequence of smoking after the 2-0 defeat against Southampton but is still playing for his longer-term future at Arsenal. Wenger was furious with Szczesny for lighting up a cigarette in the showers at St Mary’s but, beyond a likely £20,000 fine, the incident will not impact on his team selection for Sunday. Szczesny’s place was in some doubt anyway following his errors in the Southampton defeat and the availability now of both David Ospina and Emiliano Martínez. The expectation, though, is that Szczesny will keep his place and status as the club’s first-choice goalkeeper. Although there have been other mistakes this season – Szczesny was sent off against Galatasaray in the Champions League – Wenger has been satisfied with most of his performances, particularly in the 2-1 win against West Ham United last month. Wenger has also always shown considerable faith in Szczesny since he arrived as a 16-year-old, first by promoting him when he could have signed Hugo Lloris in 2012 and then again last summer when he recruited Ospina as his understudy. There is frustration, though, that Szczesny – who is now 24 – has not fully realised his potential despite all the first-team experience that he has had at a relatively young age. Arsenal have scouted other goalkeeping options and Szczesny’s future beyond the end of this season will depend heavily on how he now completes the campaign.
Posted on: Tue, 06 Jan 2015 22:36:23 +0000
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