Arsenal have now cleared the path for a ‘complete’ player to seal a transfer away from Emirates Stadium but not to Bayern Munich following interest from Vincent Kompany.
Der FCB have explored raiding north London since naming the Belgian as their new manager. Kompany switched Burnley for Bavaria to replace Thomas Tuchel in May and quickly marked an Arsenal player as one target. But the Gunners are in talks with a rival team about his deal.
Multiple stars have uncertain futures in N5 with several Arsenal players linked with transfers away this summer. Manager Mikel Arteta is open to trimming some of the excess away from his team in a bid to build a title-winning side. Now, one of those players may be off to Spain.
Sevilla have held positive talks with Arsenal for Albert Sambi Lokonga
Reports by Diario de Sevilla claim Arsenal have held positive talks with Sevilla to negotiate a loan transfer for Albert Sambi Lokonga. Los Nervionenses have identified the 24-year-old as an ‘important possibility’ as his ability to play as a No6 or a No8 is ideal for Garcia Pimienta.
But Sevilla are working with a very limited budget, so sporting director Victor Orta is paying close attention to loan deals. Lokonga has spent the past 18 months away from Arsenal with temporary stints at Crystal Palace and Luton Town. The Gunners are even not against a third.
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While it is not a simple operation, Arsenal are open to sending Lokonga to Sevilla on loan for the 2024/25 term. It would even mark the resolution of the La Liga side’s long-term interest in the Belgian. Sevilla also studied Lokonga in January 2023 before he joined Crystal Palace.
Vincent Kompany asked Bayern Munich to target Albert Sambi Lokonga
Sevilla even explored signing Lokonga from RSC Anderlecht in 2019 before he joined Arsenal two years later. Now, they may finally see what he can add at the expense of Kompany, who coached Lokonga at Anderlecht. The new Bayern Munich boss has also explored his transfer.
Straight after Der FCB appointed the Belgian, Football Transfers reported that Kompany told Bayern Munich to target Lokonga’s loan transfer from Arsenal. He is eager to help revive the midfielder’s career with his compatriot still out of favour after an injury-hit season for Luton.
Lokonga endured a tough start for Luton as he suffered a hamstring injury that sidelined the midfielder for almost three months after just two Premier League appearances. The Belgian also missed two months after sustaining a muscle strain, ending the season with 17 outings.
Yet Lokonga still regularly astounded Luton boss Rob Edwards while at Kenilworth Road over 2023/24. The Hatters coach especially waxed lyrical about all the Belgian offered in February after emerging as one of their most influential figures following Lokonga’s return from injury.
“I love him,” Edwards enthused, via Luton Today. “He’s amazing, I think he’s a brilliant player. I told him as we were walking off the pitch after training, ‘God you’re some player, I love watching you play’. I think he’s great. he’s been great for us.
“A brilliant person, so hard-working, really humble, really talented, very tactically aware, in the right place at the right time to control a game [and] takes the ball under pressure. He’s giving us a final pass as well now. He’s looking like for me a really complete midfield player.”