Arsenal will have to shell-out £80million to sign Monaco star Thomas Lemar, smashing their transfer fee record for the second time a month in the process.
Lemar is Arsene Wenger’s No 1 target – after landing striker Alexandre Lacazette – by the Ligue 1 side are demanding the massive sum in the hope of warding off interest from the Gunners, according to the Mirror.
Arsenal will have to release a number of players to fund the move as Wenger continues his summer reshuffle.
Wojciech Szczesny, Carl Jenkinson and Lucas Perez are set to leave, with the furtures of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Jack Wilshere remaining unclear.
Wenger smashed his transfer fee record earlier this month with the signing of Lacazette for £52m, but Lemar would move intot the top ten of all time fees should he move to north London.
Last month Monaco vice-president Vadim Vasilyev warned he would not sell ‘half the team’.
Vasilyev said: “I think there will be quite a few (players leaving).
“We have done a great job, we have fantastic quality players, so I don’t have to think about how many or who (to sell).
“I stay calm. There will be some departures but we will definitely not let half a team go because we want to keep the team competitive for next year. A few, yes,”