Footie Central | Football Blog Blogging the football world
Arsenal’s limited transfer fund kitty could be in line for an unexpected boost.
Manager Unai Emery is severely limited in terms of how much he can spend on transfers this summer, following the failure of his side to qualify for the Champions League, with estimates putting the money available to the Spaniard in the £40 – £45 million bracket.
The only way he can boost that amount is through player sales, and now news comes of an unexpected but welcome development for the Spaniard.
Former Arsenal youth player, Ismael Bennacer, who is currently playing for Empoli in Italy, is set to move to Serie A rivals, Fiorentina, in a £13.5 million deal. And the good news for Arsenal is that they are set to receive 30% of any transfer fee generated for him, because of a sell-on clause in his contract.
Bennacer, who is currently with the Algeria squad at the African Cup of Nations, made one senior appearance for the Gunners before leaving in 2017.
Andy is an exiled English football fan living in Cyprus. He loves all sports but football is his abiding passion, and he still has dreams every now and then about scoring the winning goal in a Wembley Cup Final, even though his playing days are long gone. He follows most major leagues, across Europe at least, and has a favoured team in each. When he’s not watching, listening, reading or downloading podcasts about football, he spend his time worrying about his beloved Arsenal.