Arsène Wenger is closing in on the £8m capture of Blaise Matuidi from St Etienne and he is also expected to talk to Patrick Vieira in the coming days about the former Arsenal captain making a dramatic return to the club.
The manager, who has signed Thomas Vermaelen from Ajax for £10m but raised £39m through the sales of Kolo Touré and Emmanuel Adebayor to Manchester City, has confirmed that he has money available, although he added that it had to be spent "in the right way", meaning with great prudence.
Wenger has monitored the progress of the 22-year-old Matuidi for the best part of three seasons, with his chief scout in France, the former Arsenal player Gilles Grimandi, urging him to move for the central midfielder. Matuidi, a graduate of the Clairefontaine academy and a former mainstay of the France Under-21 team, would appear the archetypal Wenger signing, for he is quick and intelligent, with good technique and passing ability.
St Etienne's sporting director is Damien Comolli, who served as Wenger's European scout at Arsenal for seven seasons before he went to work for Tottenham Hotspur. The pair have remained close, and Comolli, who has just overseen the €15m (£12.8m) sale of the striker Bafétimbi Gomis to Lyon, has conceded that "it would be difficult to prevent Matuidi from leaving if a top-10 European side came in for him". Matuidi has said he feels the time is right to seek a fresh challenge.
The possibility of Vieira, now at Internazionale, also moving to Arsenal sounds outlandish, but the proposition has been mooted by middlemen. Wenger, who is a mentor and confidant to Vieira, will raise the issue when the pair next speak.
Even though Vieira left Arsenal in 2005 after nine seasons, the 33-year-old continues to have the utmost respect for Wenger and his return would also be welcomed in the dressing room, where Vieira has remained in touch with his fellow Frenchmen William Gallas, Mikaël Silvestre, and Gaël Clichy, as well as the captain, Cesc Fábregas. His experience could help to galvanise a young squad.
"When we find the right players ... of course, we do not make money to leave it in the banks," Wenger said. "We are looking at some possibilities to strengthen the squad and we will only do it for players who it is worth spending the money on."
Tottenham had made a move for Vieira, and their interest in him remains alive, although the midfielder has reservations about playing for Arsenal's local rivals. There is also the option of his staying put at Inter, which did not exist two months ago when the manager, Jose Mourinho, frustrated by Vieira's wretched luck with injuries and inconsistent form, was prepared to usher him towards the exit. Vieira has since enjoyed one of his fullest pre-seasons for some time and feels fighting fit for the new campaign.As with every international player, this is a big season for Vieira, with the World Cup finals in South Africa at the end of it. Despite missing a host of France matches last season, he remains Raymond Domenech's captain. Moreover, Vieira's leading of the team at next summer's showpiece would carry extra significance, for he was born in the west African country of Senegal. He needs to be playing regular club football in the build-up and he will take his time to assess where best that interest will be served.
[+/-] Read more...
[+/-] Close this article...
