Arsenal may have to re-evaluate the way they go about their transfer dealings if they are to stand any chance of beating Manchester United to the signing of Ajax defender Lisandro Martinez.
The Argentina international may already have his head turned by the bright lights of Old Trafford given his former boss Erik ten Hag is now at the helm of the Red Devils. In turn, the Gunners will need to make a compelling case for why Martinez should favour a move to the Emirates instead.
Especially as Mirror Football reported this week that United are viewed as front-runners for Martinez while Arsenal dither.
With that being said, Arsenal will need to overcome the first and obvious hurdle of actually agreeing a fee with Ajax that the Dutch giants view as a reasonable enough figure to sanction their current player of the year's departure. Mikel Arteta's men have so far bid twice, but neither of those offers were anywhere near the Eredivisie champions' valuation.
This has actually been a running theme for Arsenal's transfer window so far. After getting off to a fast start with some notable incomings including Fabio Vieira and Gabriel Jesus, the Gunners' transfer plans have been derailed in recent days.
The 14-time FA Cup winners were at one stage leading the charge for Leeds United winger Raphinha but came nowhere near the Elland Road hierarchy's asking price with either of their official offers. Leeds slapped a £65million price tag on the Brazilian's head, but Arsenal's first bid was rumoured to be almost £30m less - therefore, it was obviously swiftly rejected.
By the time Arteta and Gunners technical director Edu had offered a verbal bid of around £50m, they had been gazumped by top-four rivals Chelsea who were willing to meet the £65m figure asked for by Leeds.
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If Arsenal aren't careful, and perhaps more crucially quicker, their efforts to sign Martinez could meet the same fate. United are thought to be in quite the hurry to get the Argentine's signature in time for him to attend the club's pre-season trip to Bangkok on Friday, July 8.
Much like their pursuit of Raphinha, Arsenal have actually lodged two official bids for Martinez - but neither one of them has managed to match Ajax's £50m price tag for the versatile defender.
With each transfer saga, there is of course a certain amount of haggling to be done from both parties involved. On the other hand, Arsenal now run the risk of simply souring relations with the selling clubs involved if they persist in offering well below the asking price.
United are expected to submit a £50m offer in the coming days, ensuring the decision may lay firmly with Martinez as to which side he chooses to play for next term.
