The £70m Arsenal transfer decision that will have Liverpool ready to pounce on deal

The ladder totters and teeters ever so slightly. I reach over, carefully, and remove the battered tile from the hook, wary of splinters, letting it fall to the dusty ground below. In its place, I fix a new tile before scuttling down the creaking rungs and taking a step back to admire my handiwork. The sign now reads: ‘Days Without a Transfer Story About Marc Guehi: 0’.

We are only partway through July, and already I have written (and you have likely read) so many of these that they are bordering on the rote and formulaic. Team X are interested in prising the defender way from Crystal Palace for somewhere in the region of £50 million to £70 million - depending on the day, the source, and the prevailing wind direction - but will face intense competition from Team Y and Team Z, who are also keen. Blah blah blah, impressive Euro 2024 campaign, blah blah blah, contract expires in 2026... you get the picture. Again.

Anyways, it is not my job to be cynical, but rather to provide you with the tools with which you can craft your own cynicism. So here goes; Arsenal are interested in prising the defender way from Crystal Palace for somewhere in the region of £70 million, according to The Times, but will face intense competition from Liverpool and Manchester United, who are also keen. Guehi’s stock has risen sharply following an impressive Euro 2024 campaign, and the 24-year-old’s current contract with the Eagles expires in 2026. Goodnight, Irene.

But wait! There’s more! Partially forgotten details reemerging like woodland critters waking from their hibernation! As per a dog-eared report from the Daily Mail, when Guehi signed for Palace from Chelsea three years ago, the Blues insisted upon the inclusion of a couple of rather astute clauses in their agreement with the Eagles. One was a 20% sell-on stipulation, which could stand to make them millions this summer, and the other was a guarantee that they would be afforded the opportunity to match any offer for Guehi, which would, admittedly, cost them millions, but would, if nothing else, bring a damn fine talent back to Stamford Bridge.

Either way, it is suggested that it is for these reasons that Palace are demanding £70 million, which in turn, has convinced Arsenal to shelve their interest to seek defensive reinforcements elsewhere. Factor in United’s recent acquisition of teenage centre-back Leny Yoro, and suddenly the pathway may have been cleared for Liverpool to make their move for the England international.

The Reds are, at this stage, evidently in the market for a player of Guehi’s ilk, and while £70 million is a monstrous amount of money, this would be an investment not just for the immediacy of next season, but for the club’s long term future as well. Here we have a defender who is only just entering his prime, who could serve Liverpool well for the next decade or so to come, and who has proven in recent weeks that he has the ability and the composure to compete with the very best players in world football.

If Arsenal truly have dropped out of the race to sign him, as The Times would have us believe, then Arne Slot’s men must be preparing a bid as we speak. If nothing else, it means we can retire finally that bloody sign once and for all.