Transfer News: Joe Willock to leave Arsenal for Newcastle United

One team’s gain is another’s loss and very much so is the case for Arsenal who is selling Joe Willock to Newcastle for a fee said to be £25m.

Tying up loose ends; personal terms are yet to be agreed upon but a deal is more certain than not at the moment for both, the Gunners and the Magpies.

The week started off in the best way possible for the Toons with news their hot pursuit of Englishman, Joe Willock, will end in triumph and jubilation.

One cannot criticise them for their excitement with him putting in a stellar display during his loan spell at St. James’ Park, helping them stay afloat in England’s top-flight.

Let’s not forget the 21-year-old is the only midfielder in Premier League history to score in seven consecutive games. He ended his short stint with eight goals scored in 14 appearances.

"Newcastle have agreed a fee in the region of £25m with Arsenal for midfielder Joe Willock.Personal terms are yet to be finalised, but Newcastle will be keen to complete the deal in time for Willock to be available for the opening game of the season against West Ham on Sunday. (Via: Sky Sports)"

Newcastle fans’ confidence in a deal happening grew when Joe was left out of the North London derby on Sunday past at the state-of-the-art Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Are the Gunners still raising funds for their Maddison move?

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Since the arrival of Ben White from Brighton for £50m at the end of last month, there hasn’t really been any movement in and out of the Emirates.

Their main focus, however, is on trying to acquire the service of James Maddison from Leicester City – but if they fail to strike a deal because of the fee – then we can see them going for somebody like Bernardo Silva, who is up for sale – or somebody else to fill the playmaker role.

The funds raised in the potential sale of Willcock will more than likely be a key factor in the Maddison pursuit. Joe Willcock and a couple of others who are unable to break into the first team were initially offered as part of the deal plus clash to the Foxes for their player.

Now they have some more cash to put down for the midfielder Mikel Arteta is most keen on adding to his squad, as he is a big admirer of the Englishman – this could really be a turning point in negotiations.

Other business going on for Arsenal?

Besides losing their friendly North London derby to Spurs over the weekend past (is any North London derby friendly?), it appears the Gunners could lose out on bringing in striker Lautaro Martinez.

Inter and Tottenham, prior to the Chelsea-Lukaku agreement, agreed to a £50m deal for the Argentine forward. However, both London clubs could lose out altogether for the Inter hitman now that their rivals are in the final stages of re-signing Lukaku.

This explicit reason is why the Serie A champions are now unwilling to part ways with Martinez; they cannot lose both premium strikers in one transfer window, regardless of their straining financial status and difficulties.

Arsenal done deals

Joined the club [4 players]

Nuno Tavares [Benfica] Details
Albert Sambi Lokonga [Anderlecht]
Mika Biereth [Fulham]
Ben White [Brighton]

Left the club [19 players]

David Luiz [released]
Levi Laing [released]
Joseph Olowu [released]
Luke Plange [released]
Jason Sraha [released]
Trae Coyle [Lausanne–Sport]
Zech Medley [KV Oostende]
Mark McGuinness [Cardiff]
Dinos Mavropanos [Stuttgart] Loan
Daniel Ballard [Millwall] Loan
Daniel Oyegoke [Brentford]
Ben Sheaf [Coventry]
Matt Smith [Doncaster] Loan
Matteo Guendouzi [Marseille] Loan
William Saliba [Marseille] Loan
Nikolaj Moller [Viktoria Koln] Loan
Deyan Iliev [SKF Sered] Loan
Tyreece John-Jules [Blackpool] Loan
Harry Clarke [Ross County] Loan