£32m Striker Ready To Snub Man Utd For Arsenal Following Wenger’s Praise

The January transfer window is now closed but that won’t stop the newspapers from speculating ahead of the summer so we’ll bring you all the news and gossip. Today, Jackson Martinez is ready to snub Man Utd for Arsenal….

Colombian international striker Jackson Martinez is ready to snub Manchester United for Arsenal following Arsene Wenger’s praise last week, according to reports.

Martinez moved to FC Porto in 2012 and has been one of the most prolific strikers in Europe over the past two-and-a-half years, scoring an incredible 85 goals in just 120 appearances.

The Colombian international was strongly linked with a switch to the Premier League last summer but after a move failed to materialise, he stayed at Porto where he’s scored 25 goals in 29 appearances so far this campaign.

The 28-year-old’s stunning form in front of goal has once again led to speculation he could be heading to England this summer with both Manchester United and Arsenal understood to be keen on luring him away from Portugal.

However, it appears the Gunners are now in the driving seat as the Express are reporting that Martinez now favours a move to the Emirates Stadium after Arsene Wenger praise him last week, with the Arsenal boss telling reporters that he thought the Colombian has what it takes to succeed in the Premier League.

“He could play in the Premier League, Jackson Martinez, because he has the body to make the difference.

“He uses in a very intelligent way his body, very short backlift and is a very good finisher.” Wenger is quoted as saying by the Express.

Wenger’s complimentary comments came shortly after Martinez had confirmed he’ll look to leave Porto at the end of the season in search of a new challenge.

“In the summer I’ll leave Porto for a new team,” said Martinez, who has 85 goals in 122 outings for the Portuguese giants.

“Players develop well in Portugal, and I thank the club for making me the player I am today.

“However, it’s time for a new adventure, to grow from a professional point of view.” Martinez is quoted as saying by the Express.

Porto are not usually the type of club to stand in a players way if they want to leave as they’ve cashed in on a number of top names over the years, so I’m sure the Portuguese giants would be willing to let Martinez go at the right price this summer.

However, they usually demand big money and it’s believed the striker has a £32m buy-out clause in his contract, so Arsenal and United will have to dig deep if they want to land him at the end of the season.

With Lukas Podolski expected to leave Arsenal on a permanent basis at the end of the season, perhaps Wenger has identified Martinez as a potential replacement and he’d certainly pose a real threat to Olivier Giroud’s first team position if he was to make the move to North London.

READ MORE –> Arsenal transfer news | Man Utd transfer news

But I wouldn’t discount United just yet. Louis van Gaal is likely to be on the look out for a top class striker himself this summer as he’s highly unlikely to take up the option to make Radamel Falcao’s loan move permanent, and United have to financial firepower to go head-to-head with the Gunners for Martinez’ signature.