July 06, (THEWILL) – The excess wage-shedding at English Premier League side Arsenal continued on Tuesday as the north London club accepted a cut-price deal for midfielder Mateo Guendouzi after his loan deal was confirmed.
The deal means Guendouzi returns to Ligue 1 to join Olympique Marseille on a season-long loan.
The club, which finished fifth in the 2020/2021 season, confirmed the move which included an obligatory clause to buy the midfielder at the end of the next campaign.
Guendouzi had a promising career going on at the Emirates until a bad tackle at Brighton led to a major falling out between the Frenchman and Mikel Arteta, leading to claims of a bad attitude on the part of the player from club management and his exit from north London.
It was not long before the 22-year-old was shipped to Hertha Berlin in the Bundesliga. Guendouzi spent the entirety of last season helping the Bundesliga side avoid relegation with a fair bit of consistency and flashes of the attitudinal issues that forced him out of Arsenal.
Upon his return, there was still no place for him in Arteta’s squad. As a result, the young player was swiftly transported to France ahead of pre-season in the European Leagues. The Ligue side are reportedly parting with €1million for the loan, with an €11m (£9.4m) fee due to make the move permanent if the parties agree.
This makes the entire money involved reach a total of £10.25million. However, that amount is £7.75million short of the player’s initial valuation on Transfermarkt. But, because Arteta did not want Guendouzi around ahead of next season, the money will still be a welcome boost as Arsenal look to strengthen this summer before the season begins.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
