Arsenal Ready To Beat Tottenham To £15m-Rated Stopper

As we approach the opening of the summer window clubs will be intensifying their efforts in the transfer market so we’ll bring you all the latest news and gossip. Today, Arsenal hope to beat Tottenham to the signing of David Marshall.

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger is ready to beat rivals Tottenham Hotspur to the signing of £15m-rated Cardiff City goalkeeper David Marshall as he looks to find a replacement for Swansea-bound Lukasz Fabianski, according to reports today.

Despite starting in last weekends FA Cup final victory over Hull City, Fabianski is set to leave the Emirates after rejecting Arsenal’s offer of a new contract and he’s reportedly on the verge of sealing a free transfer move to Swansea City.

The Polish international’s exit, combined with Emiliano Viviano returning to Italy following the completion of his year-long loan, means Wenger needs to bring in at least one experienced stopper to offer competition to Wojciech Szczesny and it appears Marshall has emerged as his number one target.

The Telegraph claim that the Gunners are set to firm-up their interest in the 29-year-old and are keen to beat Spurs to the Scottish international’s signature this summer.

Tottenham are also understood to be have identified Marshall as a potential replacement for Hugo Lloris should the Frenchman leave White Hart Lane, but Spurs won’t make any move until Lloris’s future is resolved which leaves the door wide open for Arsenal to complete a deal.

The newspaper suggests that although Wenger hasn’t been put off by Cardiff’s £15m valuation of Marshall, the Gunners boss is keen to try and drive the price down, but it remains to be seen whether the Welsh club will be willing to compromise.

Marshall was City’s stand-out performer last season and was rightfully named as their player of the year, but despite their relegation to the Championship, Cardiff are under no pressure to sell on the cheap as he only signed a new contract in February.

No doubt Marshall put in some eye-catching displays last year and he was some pundits vote to be named in the PFA Team of the Season. However, £15m seems like an unrealistic valuation for a player who’s only had one good season at the top level and is now set to play in the Championship.

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I can’t see Wenger agreeing to pay anything over £8m-£10m for a back-up goalkeeper, so unless Cardiff agree to reduce their asking price substantially, I personally don’t see Marshall heading to north London any time soon.