According to Footmercato journalist Sébastien Denis, Leeds have identified Gunners target Cody Gakpo as a possible replacement for Raphinha. Last month, football.london He understood that Arsenal were interested in bringing the 23-year-old PSV winger to London Colney, but as Leeds gave the green light to Rafinha’s departure, Edu seems to have turned his gaze to the Brazilian international. According to Fabrizio Romano, there was a secret clause in Raphinha’s contract that depended on whether or not Leeds were relegated. Had the Yorkshire-based club been relegated, it would have activated a 25 25m release clause. READ MORE: Liverpool “interested” in acquiring the goal of the Arsenal striker in the middle of the transfer decision of Santo Mane But with Leeds avoiding relegation, the Brazilian now has a 65 65m release clause, according to The Guardian. Arsenal are said to have already rejected an initial offer, but the Gunners reportedly intend to sign Raphinha with a second offer on the road. Barcelona are believed to have expressed interest as well, but the well-documented financial problems of the Spanish giants seem to be preventing Xavi from bidding. Still, Edu has some financial questions to answer. According to the Mirror, Arsenal is in the transfer race to acquire Rafinha until Nicolas Pepe is sold. The 27-year-old, who left Stade Pierre-Mauroy for the Emirates in 2019 for 72 72m, is said to want to leave this summer, but a move depends on what is considered fair. Mikel Arteta is said to be hoping that a large percentage of Raphinha’s remuneration would come from the sale of the Ivorian winger, giving an indication of what Edu values. Regardless of whether Arsenal sign Rafinha, the Gunners boss is willing to welcome several notable transfers. When asked if he expects another busy transfer window in terms of player recruitment, he said: “I’m waiting for it, yes. I think both tournaments [the Champions League and Europa League] require a much larger team because the number of games you play is much higher in both, so I do not think [which you qualify for] makes a big difference or changes a lot. “If you can afford it and we do not need to upset the team we had to do, if you ask me what I want there are 22 away players and three goalkeepers. You have to go a long way from the aspects you see on the pitch, it’s a lot of things have to be implemented and that takes time. “ READ NEXT: Fabio Vieira already has a nickname at Arsenal after Nuno Tavares’s welcome on Instagram Albert Sabi Lokonga prepares to stay at Arsenal amid talks over loan and transfer interest from Yuri Tillemans The collapse of Youri Tielemans’s agreement with Arsenal threatens the repetition of Mikel Arteta’s summer nightmare The full list of Arsenal Premier League games for 2022/23 What Mikel Arteta said about the new acquisition of Fabio Vieira in view of the transfer to Arsenal
