According to the latest reports, Arsenal will not be signing Barcelona defender Samuel Umtiti. The Frenchman was in the Gunners’ wishlist for a long time but due to their budget restrictions, the deal won’t be materialized this season.
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Cameroon-born Samuel Umtiti is valued at roughly 70million euros now and is the most expensive central defender in the world from a transfer value perspective by CIES. However, the Arsenal management has only released 80million euros for their manager Unai Emery to spend in the summer, which makes the chances of Barcelona defender joining the Premier League side negligible.
Samuel Umtiti came through the ranks of Lyon and even made 131 appearances for their senior side from 2012 to 2016. Barcelona roped him thereafter and, he has been a regular starter for them since then.
The emergence of Clement Lenglet and the pursuit of Ajax captain Matthijs de Ligt means that Samuel Umtiti won’t be signing an extension with Barcelona. With Arsenal letting go the World Cup star, Umtiti might be seen donning Manchester United or Juventus’ colors next season, who are strongly linked to him. Only time will tell what will be the next movement of the Frenchmen.
