Arsenal Miss Out on Malick Fofana as Sunderland Seals Transfer

Arsenal have been beaten to one of their prime Deadline Day targets, with Malick Fofana set for a shock move to Sunderland after the Gunners refused to meet Lyon’s demands.

Mikel Arteta’s side opened talks with the Ligue 1 club on Monday as they pushed to add a winger before the window closed. Fofana had been identified as a key option to bolster attacking depth, particularly on the left, and was understood to be open to a switch to north London, even holding talks with Arteta.

Then the deal stalled.

Reports from Santi Aouna and David Ornstein say Arsenal walked away rather than pay Lyon’s asking price of around €40 million. That hesitation opened the door for a Premier League rival to pounce, and Sunderland did not wait for a second invitation.

The Wearside club have moved quickly to agree a €30 million fee plus add-ons, a package that brings the total closer to Lyon’s original valuation and leaves Arsenal empty-handed. Fofana, 21, will now travel to the north east for a medical ahead of completing a Deadline Day transfer few saw coming at the start of the week.

It is not the first time Fofana has been close to a move this summer. Crystal Palace had tracked the winger and were close to an agreement with Lyon earlier in the window, but the player did not want a switch to Selhurst Park. Arsenal’s interest changed the landscape, only for Sunderland to rip up the script at the final moment.

For Arsenal, the timing is painful. The club have already allowed Leandro Trossard and Gabriel Martinelli to leave this summer, stripping numbers from the left flank. Ethan Nwaneri is also due to undergo a medical at Borussia Dortmund ahead of a loan move, while Christos Tzolis has arrived from Club Brugge to help plug the gap.

But Tzolis was never supposed to be the only answer out wide. Fofana was targeted as a major piece of the puzzle. Now, as he heads for Sunderland instead, Arsenal face the final hours of the window still searching for the winger they thought they had within reach.