Cristhian Mosquera in action for Valencia against Real Madrid (Photo by Aitor Alcalde/Getty Images)
Arsenal’s potential deal to sign Valencia defender Cristhian Mosquera has reportedly “completely stalled”, according to the Daily Mirror.
The Gunners have been keen to sign the talented young Spanish centre-back, who is also said to be eager to move to the Emirates Stadium.
Mosquera has informed Valencia of his desire to join Arsenal, but it seems the two clubs agreeing a fee could still be tricky.
The Mirror claim Arsenal have left Valencia’s hierarchy unhappy with their initial approach, with the deal perhaps set to cost more than £20m.
It seems things may have stalled for now, even if Mosquera has made it clear he wants the move to happen.
Can Arsenal still sign Cristhian Mosquera?
Valencia don’t appear to be in the strongest negotiating position, with Mosquera in the final year of his contract.
This could mean Valencia are at serious risk of losing the 21-year-old on a free transfer in a year’s time unless they cash in on him now.
Even if that means losing Mosquera for below market value, it’s better than nothing, so Arsenal can probably still work out a way to land the player for a reasonable fee.
What would Mosquera bring to Arsenal?
A tall and imposing central defender, Mosquera looks like he has the attributes to succeed in the Premier League.
For now, however, he would most likely just be bringing squad depth more than anything else, as it’s hard to imagine him getting many starting opportunities ahead of William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhaes.
Mosquera can also fill in at right-back if needed, so that could be another useful option for Mikel Arteta after Ben White missed a lot of last season due to injury, while Jurrien Timber was out for almost the entire campaign before that.
