Arsenal are plotting a move for West Ham’s defender Issa Diop as boss Mikel Arteta sets his defensive targets for the Summer.
Centre-back Diop has impressed a number of rival Premier League clubs since arriving from Toulouse in the summer of 2018.
Arteta heads towards his first transfer window as Gunners boss and the Daily Mirror claims the Arsenal boss believes the Frenchman could help solve a problem that his club has had for years. Diop has already attracted interest from Manchester United during his time in England but West Ham co-owner David Sullivan issued a strong hands-off warning to Old Trafford bosses.
The report claims Arsenal are ready to test the Hammers resolve in the summer but West Ham would not let the player who cost them £22.5m two years ago go on the cheap.
It would take a massive overvaluation bid from the North London rivals to persuade West Ham to consider an offer for a player who officially is not for sale.
I dont think selling him is an option. If we are going to improve as a team we need to keep hold of our best players. COYI
One moment we worry that Man U want Diop then he has loads of criticism chucked at him and now it’s Gunner’s chance to make us worry again. I am just pleased other teams want our players; we must have got something right!
Selling any of our better young players is not in our interest and I doubt David Moyes is thinking about that. We need a change–over plan to replace our older or injury prone players with young blood – which seems DM’s agenda. We have some great young players coming through and additions like Fornals will only enhance that. COYI
When Diop arrived at our club he looked very useful and it was no surprise that Mourinho was interested on behalf of Man U. Since then however, I don’t actually think he’s progressed as much as I was hoping and has been a regular member of a very leaky and error-strewn defence.
I certainly haven’t written him off but should Arsenal or any other club come in with a £50m + offer, I’d suggest biting their hands off (as long as the funds were reinvested in players).
You make a great point here. He hasn’t progressed, if anything he has regressed. He had a really tight partnership with Balbuena last season, but Ogbonna has played like Hammer of the year, and he didn’t collaborate so well with ‘The General’.
Sell him , The three clowns will try and talk Tony Gale or Alvin out of retirement ⚒⚒⚒
Paper talk… wonder what number they would put on him ? If Maguire was over £80m and he is useless then what price Diop who is young and better already than Magiire ?