Arsenal are preparing a swoop to sign Real Madrid playmaker James Rodriguez as a replacement for Mesut Ozil. James is currently plying his trade in the Bundesliga with Bayern Munich and he’s currently 18 months into a two-year loan with the Bundesliga giants.
Despite being an integral part of the Colombian team at the Russian 2018 World Cup, James has find his playing hard to come by under Niko Kovac at Bayern.
Arsenal boss Unai Emery is keen on shipping Ozil out of the club to free up funds at the Emirates but the Gunners have received little interest for the German playmaker and his £300,000-a-week now looks unbearable for the club.
According to The Metro, the British tabloid made it known that Bayern paid Real Madrid around £12m loan fee to sign Rodriguez in 2017 but there are other reports – from the Daily Mail – which claim the Gunners are eager to cover the final six months of his deal in order to lure him to the Emirates.
In doing so, the North Londoners would be paying around £3m which would make a smart business move as the club look to offload Ozil.
James, who claimed the Golden Boot after scoring six goals throughout the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, despite his side getting knocked out in the quarter-finals by the host nation, is on two-years loan deal with Bayern which hands the Bundesliga reigning champions an option to sign him on a permanent deal for around £40m but they’re unlikely to do so while Kovac still remains in-charge of the club.
Emery admitted last week that Arsenal do not have the funds to sign anyone permanently this month but they could afford a loan fee for Rodriguez.
The Gunners are currently working on a deal for Barcelona star Denis Suarez but the La Liga giants would prefer the move to be permanent.