Arsenal are continuing their work in the summer transfer window as all eyes remain on their pursuit of Vinicius Jr. The Real Madrid winger is a major target for Mikel Arteta, who remains "smitten" with the idea of signing him.
Vinicius Jr standoff
Vinicius Jr and Real Madrid are now at an additional standoff alongside stalled contract talks. The winger will not return to club training this week as his future in Spain remains uncertain, according to the Daily Mail.
The 26-year-old is in the final 12 months of his contract and could be open to a move away from Spain as he "wants to feel loved." His representatives are understood to be trying to restart contract extension negotiations with the La Liga giants. The Brazilian is keen to earn the same £25million salary as Kylian Mbappe. He is currently believed to be earning between £12m to £15m at Real Madrid.
Arsenal price tag problem
In order for Arsenal to secure Vinicius Jr's signature, they will likely need to blow their club transfer record out the water and also make him the highest-paid player on the team. The Gunners have registered an interest with the club's hierarchy agreeing on the prospective deal in-house.
Meanwhile, Arsenal are demanding at least £15m for Fabio Vieira's signature. This puts the Gunners' valuation much higher than what Hamburg are expecting, as the Bundesliga outfit are only prepared to pay around £8.5m for his services. Sky Sports reports that while the Gunners remain firm for now, Vieira is into the final year of his contract in north London — and this could work in Hamburg's favour. The 26-year-old is also keen to return to the club he spent last season on loan to.
Club chief Eric Huwer has confirmed that they will not allow the transfer saga to drag on and will move on to another target. He said: "We fell in love with Fábio a little bit last year. But we are not going to be unreasonable. If Arsenal say yes, we look forward to him. If they say no, we look forward to someone else."
