Arsenal are reportedly in advanced talks to sign Sporting CP’s rising star Tiago Tomas, who is expected to cost around £20 million.
According to The Sun, Arsenal are set to make their latest coup in the market by securing the services of Tiago Tomas. The Sporting CP attacker has appeared on the radar of the Premier League giants, after impressing technical director Edu following his performance against Benfica earlier this week.
The Gunners have made swift progress since and are close to finalising a deal for Tomas. It is believed that the youngster has a staggering release clause worth around £52 million, but in light of the financial crisis inflicted by the pandemic, Sporting CP are ready to offload their young sensation for a fee of just £20 million in the summer.
Arsenal had famously missed out on a certain Cristiano Ronaldo during his time at Sporting CP as the Portuguese sensation eventually joined Manchester United – going to become one of the best players in the history of football. It appears they are determined to avoid a similar scenario, which is why the club is ready to shell £20 million for Tomas in the summer.
The 18-year-old primarily plays as a centre-forward but his versatile nature allows him to operate on the flanks as well. Although he is far from being a first-team regular at Sporting thus far, the youngster has indeed made an impact with his positional sense in the final third.
In fact, Tomas resembles Chelsea superstar Timo Werner, as far as his style of play is concerned. His pace, agility and tendency to sniff goalscoring opportunities would make him an ideal counter-attacking weapon for Arsenal. He can also be considered as an alternative for the likes of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Alexandre Lacazette and Eddie Nketiah at Arsenal next season.
The addition of Tomas could also see Arsenal follow their recent trend of signing young players that have so far carried the club’s hopes and expectations under the leadership of Mikel Arteta – as covered in our mid-season review for Arsenal this season.
The Gunners have indeed offloaded Mesut Ozil in January while the likes of Lacazette and Willian are unlikely to remain at Emirates for long. The arrival of someone like Tomas could, therefore, mark the ushering of a new era as Arteta looks to offer Arsenal a new identity during his tenure in north London.
