Rumours surrounding an apparent pre-contract deal with Atletico Madrid and Santi Cazorla are straight out of the “made-up rumour” pile on the desks of Spanish news-bringers Marca.
Arsenal’s player of the season was rumoured by Radio stations El Partido, Onda Cero and Radio Marca to have agreed personal terms with Atletico who recently unveiled the signing of David Villa from Barcelona.
The Madrid club are looking to spend the reminder of their available funds after the sale of Falcao to AS Monaco, and have so far used just €12million out of the €60million gained from selling the Colombian.
Los Rojiblancos look to have missed out on target Christian Benteke from Aston Villa but are still in the hunt for a marquee signing to encourage an assault on La Liga’s top 2 next season.
Media Trashtalk
Although Atletico are willing to spend, it is almost certain that Cazorla will not be returning to his homeland next season.
Arsenal themselves have rubbished the claims, plus transfer regulations state that no player can agree personal terms without the consent of a parent club anyway.
Cazorla is a player known for his loyalty, staying at cash-strapped Villarreal when a number of their stars decided to jump ship. His move to Malaga was done with the sole intention of raising funds for the relegated club who recently made it back into the Spanish top division.
Cazorla has no reason not to be happy at Arsenal. He was one of only 4 players to reach double figures for both goals and assists in 2012/13, along with fellow Gunner Theo Walcott, Wayne Rooney and Juan Mata. He was voted Arsenal player of the season for his debut season, making 49 appearances in all competitions, scoring 12 and assisting 16.
Proposed Deal
Although the Gunners squad are away in Vietnam for a pre-season tour, Cazorla is partaking in a rest period after his appearances at the Confederations Cup in Brazil.
Sources have said that Atletico chief executive Miguel Angel Gil Marin was in London recently to persuade Santi to return to Spain in a £17.5million deal. They narrowly missed out when Arsenal signed Cazorla from Malaga last season and would use the signing of close friend David Villa as bait.
However we at Arsenal know that Cazorla will not leave Arsenal this season, as the 28-year-old has everything he needs right here at the Emirates.
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