In one of the most unusual transfers of this summer transfer window, Chelsea defender David Luiz is set to move to London rivals Arsenal, just three months after agreeing to a new contract with the Blues. Arsenal are in desperate need of an experienced centre-back after losing (h/t BBC) Laurent Koscielny to Bordeaux.
Various reports, including that of BBC’s David Ornstein state that the Gunners’ bid of £8 million for the Brazilian centre-back has been accepted and that Arsenal will offer a two-year deal to Luiz. Arsenal will confirm this deal as well as the deal to sign Celtic left-back Kieran Tierney on deadline day.
Luiz, who returned to Chelsea for a second spell with the London club in 2016, has made nearly 250 appearances for the club, both spells combined, having first joined the English club in 2011, before a two-year spell at Paris Saint-Germain. He was re-signed by Chelsea for £34 million after they had sold him for £50 million, two years earlier.
The Telegraph has reported that there have been a number of fall-outs over the last week between the player and manager Frank Lampard and that is the main reason for Luiz’s imminent move to a direct rival.
Ludicrous or an excellent move by Emery?
Arsenal’s move to sign Luiz from Chelsea has come out of the blue and is surprising considering the transfer ban that Chelsea currently have, which prohibits them from signing players in this transfer window and the next. But, the move does make sense as Arsenal do not have quality centre-back options following the departure of Koscielny.
It’s quite clear that German defender Shkodran Mustafi is not good enough and has made too many errors, while Rob Holding is currently out due to an injury and Calum Chambers has not lived up to expectations yet to be leading the backline for a club like Arsenal.
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That leaves Arsenal manager Unai Emery with just one good defender – Sokratis, which makes this bid for Luiz make sense. Luiz has vast Premier League experience and although he can be quite erratic at times, his passing and distribution from the back along with the much-needed leadership skills will help the Gunners build attacks and also release their very quick forwards.
At £8 million, Luiz is a bargain buy and a risk worth taking for the Gunners, one that will most likely pay off for them.
