Paris Saint-Germain bid £25m for Hector Bellerin - and Arsenal may need to sell to land their top target

Hector Bellerin
(Image credit: PA)

Arsenal right-back Hector Bellerin is the subject of a £25m bid from Paris Saint-Germain according to reports - with Arsenal apparently considering the offer.

Bellerin has been a regular in the Arsenal side since he broke through in the 2014/15 season, after injuries to Mathieu Debuchy and Calum Chambers left the Gunners short. Now that Arsenal have Ainsley Maitland-Niles and Cedric Soares available at right-back, however - not to mention Chambers, a long-term absentee but still capable of playing in that position - Arsenal are considering letting one of these players leave.

Maitland-Niles, who was called up to the England squad for the first time this week, is a target for Wolverhampton Wanderers. Wolves are believed to have bid around £15m - the same fee that they've just let their first-choice right-back Matt Doherty leave to Tottenham Hotspur for. Arsenal are reluctant to let Maitland-Niles leave but will sell if the player himself wants to go.

Bellerin, however, could command a fee double that. PSG's offer is believed to include £5m of add-ons, on top of the original £25m and the Champions League runners-up would be helping Arsenal by taking one of their biggest earners off the books. With the likes of Bayern Munich and Juventus also apparently interested though, it's thought that Arsenal can push that figure up to around £35m at least. 

Mikel Arteta has signaled his desire to keep Bellerin but with the north Londoners seeking upgrades elsewhere on the pitch, three right-backs at the club is somewhat of a luxury that Arsenal can't afford.

The Gunners still intend to trigger Thomas Partey's £40m release clause - but with that fee remaining static, they want to get the rest of their business done before signing the Atletico Madrid midfielder.

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Houssem Aouar is another big target and could cost around £40m too. The Lyon midfielder is a naturally creative, somewhat versatile footballer that Arteta would love to mould into the primary chance creator of his side - but outgoings need to happen before anyone comes in. 

Having just signed Lille defender Gabriel, Arsenal have a whopping 10 players within the squad who can play in the centre of defence. It's thought that Newcastle United want to take Rob Holding on loan but Arteta would equally like to jettison Sead Kolasinac, Sokratis Papastathopoulos and injured pair Shkodran Mustafi and Calum Chambers, within the next two windows.

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Alexandre Lacazette is another high-value player that Arsenal would like to move on. The Gunners are unlikely to recoup the £50m they spent on the Frenchman in 2018, but hope that his sale could at least partly fund new signings. Countryman Matteo Guendouzi is proving hard to shift, with technical director Edu valuing the troublesome midfielder at £25m - about £10m more than any buying club has been willing to pay.

Al Nassr have offered playmaker Mesut Ozil, 31, an £18m contract to join the Saudi Arabian side. It's unlikely though that the German will take them up on the offer.

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