Report: Arsenal Eyeing Move For Sporting Lisbon Star, £52m Release Clause In-Play

Arsenal have Goncalo Inacio in their sights…

Arsenal are eyeing a move for Sporting Lisbon defender Goncalo Inacio as Mikel Arteta looks to bolster his options at the back, though any move may have to wait until the summer, The Sun’s Jordan Davies reports.

Inacio, who’s left-footed and can play at the heart of the defence or at left-back, has a €60million release clause in his contract which makes a potential deal rather straightforward.

However, given our recent history of paying transfer fees in instalments, release clauses require the entire fee to be delivered in one sum which would put a dent in our Financial Fair Play balance sheet.

It means any move for the 22-year-old may come in the summer, though the club could create room to manoeuvre if they make a significant sale – especially for an academy talent.

Arteta’s squad is currently threadbare in the defensive department due to injuries suffered by Jurrien Timber and Takehiro Tomiyasu.

The aforementioned duo’s absence has been further compounded by Thomas Partey’s injuries this season with the Ghanaian also a potential option at right-back.

It has led to huge speculation that the Spaniard may choose to delve into the upcoming January to strengthen that area of the pitch and guard against a repeat of what happened last season.

In the second half of last season, two season-ending injuries suffered by Tomiyasu and William Saliba on the same night sent our campaign into turmoil and ultimately cost us the Premier League title.

While the Japanese international’s current problem isn’t a long-term one, he’s certainly unreliable in terms of his fitness with added emphasis on his presence due to Timber’s serious injury.

The former Ajax man suffered an ACL injury on the opening day of the campaign and if we see him again this term that will be considered a bonus.