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The Gunners have reached an agreement with Barcelona over the sale of Cesc Fabregas, however they haven't left themselves with much time to reinvest the money received.


As strange as it sounds, Arsenal supporters won't be too distraught about the departure of their captain Cesc Fabregas to Barcelona, which looks closer than ever with the clubs striking a deal and the midfielder in Spain for a medical.

They will have known all summer that the homesick World Cup winner was likely to leave and their main concern isn't so much about who is going, but whether those players will be replaced, with that frustration apparent in fresh chants of "spend some f****** money" at Newcastle on Saturday.

Far more worrying is the prospect of Samir Nasri following Fabregas out of the door, which is rated at 1.11 on Betfair, as it will leave them in need of at least one more playmaker in addition to a new centre back and potentially another wide option.

Arsene Wenger had previously insisted that the Frenchman would be kept for another season even if it meant losing him for nothing next year, yet is said to have altered his stance, with the likelihood being that he will become the fourth player to leave them for Manchester City in 26 months.

And whereas if both Fabregas and Nasri had gone in mid-June, it would have been disappointing but no disaster, the thought of suddenly having neither around a fortnight before the transfer window closes is one that will surely rattle even as calm a market operator as Wenger.

There won't be a shortage of funds, with the sales set to raise around £55 million, though buying for the right price is increasingly difficult this close to deadline day, so Wenger will have to sacrifice his eagerness to avoid paying over the odds if he is to convince fans that good times lie ahead.

Finding time to even negotiate will be tough with the 14.5 title outsiders occupied trying to qualify for the Champions League over the next two weeks, yet Shakhtar Donetsk boss Mircea Lucescu has revealed that their interest in Brazilian creator Jadson is genuine, with a £10 million deal mooted.


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